


400CQ, Part 4: Lillie's Grand Voyage

by miraimisu



Series: The 400 Coin Quest [4]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions, Pocket Monsters: Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon | Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon Versions
Genre: A Very Soft Date, Banter, Blackring Character Development, Chaotic Cooking: the sequel, Criminal amounts of fluff, Dancing, Enemies to Allies to Friends to Lovers: the Cycle will soon be Completed, F/M, Fluff, Fluff galore, Found Family, Gentle Conversations, Hugging, Ilima the Shameless Flirt, Implications of Sexual Content (non-graphic and referential), Jealousy (lowkey), Kissing, Kissing (Vol II), Letters, Lonashipping, Longing, Lots and I mean LOTS of Buddy Emotional Talk, Marriage, Moon being a Smooth Criminal, Promises, Romance, SnowLilyShipping, Snuggling, Stargazing, The Squad Becomes a Mafia for a day, Timeskip, Traveling, pinning, sexual tension galore, talks about love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:22:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 153,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23130874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miraimisu/pseuds/miraimisu
Summary: Meet Gladion, a man that was once enshrouded in his own demons and has found the family he was looking for all along– and, maybe, something else.Meet Moon, an assassin that has now achieved her dreams and her hands on a treasure much better than gold: a new family, a new home, and maybe something else.Meet Hau, the sorcerer that once couldn't move, and now can fly.Meet Lillie, the princess trapped in her hometown, longing to reach the stars and find what destiny holds for her.What would happen if fate brought them together? Absolute bliss, newfound feelings andlove, that's what.[PLAYLIST]
Relationships: Gladio | Gladion/Moon, Hau/Lilie | Lillie (Pokemon)
Series: The 400 Coin Quest [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1539001
Comments: 21
Kudos: 19





	1. Remembrance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wicke, in her infinite wisdom and patience, sends her beloved four to a needed vacation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO
> 
> welcome to the final installment of this series I hope you have a snack, preferably salty because this arc is gonna get really fluffy. If you're in this fic out of curiosity because of lona being finally blatant in this fic, you can
> 
> 1\. go back to arc 1 and read from the beginning you damn SINNER IT WILL MAKE IT ALL SM MORE WORTHY  
> 2\. don't and read from here because HEY some people wanna read fluff only and tbh this arc is plenty of fun so YOU'RE WELCOME TO SAY AND ENJOY THE SHIPPING <3
> 
> Let's strap in for the final rodeo my dudes and I HOPE YOU ENJOYYY nwnwnwnwnw

Hau considers himself a very basic man; he enjoys the little things in life, takes things slowly, breathes in the sunlight and relishes the silence. He has a few friends, but all of them are equally amazing, badass and kind. Well, some are more forward about it than others; some are more violent, too. Friendship comes in different shapes and forms, after all– and so does peace.

His definition of peace has many disambiguations, but the best one of them all, he's decided, is taking walks around Zeffarei during a sunny day; again, very simple. Hau has simple needs, simple outlooks. The only thing he wouldn't mind having right now is a jacket, for the sun might be up and early but the winter doesn't forgive anybody.

It certainly hasn't forgiven Lillie, who walks right by him with her usual working dress and a light jacket on her; it's not enough. "I should have considered the idea of a walk further. It's rather cold outside."

Hau chuckles, walking right by her side. "Told you to grab a thicker jacket before leaving the palace. You got _tons_ of those in your closet."

Lillie puffs her cheeks, and then sighs. "I don't want to walk around with one of those thick capes with the fur. Gladion likes them, but I certainly don't– they are too extravagant to my liking."

"Yeah, but I bet you'd be a lil' warmer now," says Hau, side-walking to her and rubbing his hands on her shoulders– a gesture too familiar and warm to grace the Empress with, but she's already used to that. "See? Any warmer now?"

She giggles, nodding. "A little bit. Our walk is warming me up a little. I needed to get out of that office for a change. And don't get me started with meetings and… Arceus."

Hau's hands cease rubbing and pat her forearms comfortingly. Anybody walking around them wouldn't be surprised to see their warm exchanges; it's no secret that Hau is friendly with anything and anybody, but his soft spot for the Empress, her bodyguard, and Gladion is known by everyone. Touching the Empress might be unachievable by everyone, but it certainly isn't for Hau.

"Man, work is eating you up, ain't it?" Lillie nods grimly. Hau lets go of her as they deviate towards Flabebé Park. "Didn't Wicke tell ya' she wanted to meet with you today, too? I _love_ Wicke but she's kinda…"

" _Elaborate_? That might be the word you are looking for." Hau shrugs. Elaborate is a fairly permissive and forgiving word to the hour-long spiels the doctor would provide during meetings. "Although she said it would be much more casual today. I wonder what could have happened to warrant a meeting again."

Lillie has been Empress for approximately one month and a half now. Legally speaking, she became the Empress when Lusamine was taken from the Moonreach Sanctuary and into the Solaris Monastery, but that's another conversation to be had.

Ever since she had taken over the throne, it had all been meetings on top of meetings and visits from ambassadors. As far as she knows, this is supposed to be a seasonal occurrence rather than something inherent to the job, but Lillie doesn't seem to enjoy sitting around and bossing people around. Whenever she's asked for advice and leadership, she sometimes squirms for an answer.

It's not a matter of her not being unprepared for the job, but rather that she doesn't want to stay trapped in that palace any further, and her being Empress entails _exactly_ that.

Not to mention that Hau knows that her personality is too candid to take after Lusamine's ruthless reign and that she's expected to be cunning, witty and maybe even _mean_. She's too heart-shaped to do that. She's strong with her magic and kindness, but her disappointment with this job is draining her spirit.

Hau, however, smiles. "How's Gladbag managing, by the way?"

Lillie smiles too, knowing. "He's been studying, studying, and studying more. I can't wait for him to take over, if he ever does." She hurries a few steps ahead, running from the people at the entrance and deeper into the park, encompassed by the walls of the palace and the houses on the other street. "I feel a little odd about it, though."

Hau follows her with ample strides. "Why's that?"

"Well…" She folds her arms. "Gladion is great, don't get me wrong, but… Mother expected me to inherit the throne, not a son that she doesn't even remember. It feels very strange."

"Don't you wanna go back to studying sorcery and all that, though?"

" _Arceus_ , yes. Don't tell anybody, but I can't wait," Lillie says, though whispering lest anybody hears her. Hau grins in mischief. "I thought that being the Empress would mean more freedom and more of everything, but… now that Gladion is thinking about taking over… I can't help but be excited. I'm not made for this."

"And Lusamine kinda leavin' so suddenly doesn't help, either, does it?" Lillie shakes her head. "I mean, Gladion is studying and all that, but is he gonna take over for real? He has all the rights to, but… I can't see him being the Emperor either."

"Mother once told me that it's very hard to picture _anybody_ we know sitting on a position of such power. It's why we always have to rely on our intuition and judgment to sit somebody in a place as delicate as that." There is a little bit of Lusamine-sounding chide in that sentence, but Lillie conveys it in a much sweeter way. "I think Gladion would make a great Emperor."

Hau, however, grimaces in partial disagreement. "He _hates_ talking to people, though."

She snickers; it's not evil, but it truly is playful. "He'll grow out of that. He's just a big baby sometimes– and he will _adore_ the fashion. Mother left a hefty supply of, as Moon calls them, 'edgy clothes that only he would wear'."

"And your mom too, right?"

"She would rarely wear those capes, but they are very warm. Gladion puts them over himself when he's studying in the library. He's… very hardworking. And silent. He calls Moon and me bookworms but he reads much more than Moon and I do," she huffs in annoyance, shaking her head fondly afterward. "But he will be fine. If he decides to take the job… he will be an amazing leader, I'm sure of it. I don't know the man who educated him, but he did a pretty good job in that department."

Hau tilts his head in askance. "What department? Didn't that man make his childhood absolutely terrible?"

"I… yes, he did. I didn't mean to sound so tactless; I mean that he has educated him for success, that's for sure. Though, I'm not sure if this is the path that man had expected Gladion to take," Lillie chuckles breathlessly, without humor. "Gladion knows a lot about economics and politics. Mother never let me touch any of those books. She said they weren't 'made for a girl like me'."

He raises an eyebrow. "Dude, ain't that sexist? Books are for everyone. That's a bunch of bullshit."

"It was more about the 'like me' part, though. She was too insistent on me becoming powerful to focus on my rightful upbringing as a future Empress. It makes a lot of sense now that I think about it. No wonder I don't particularly enjoy the job."

Hau's eyes crinkle in humor. Always positive, always an optimist. "That's okay! Not everyone's made for their parents' jobs. To be honest, I know you're gonna be fine no matter what happens. I bet these meetings are only a seasonal thing and all that." Hau bends his arms behind his head. "I could always take over if ya' get sick or something! We can probably say you gotta get medicine in the Kandrus Empire or something and run away.

Lillie sighs. "Oh, Hau. That sounds delightful."

"I know! Man, I would make a great Emperor myself, wouldn't I?" Hau laughs.

Lillie's eyes soften. "You truly would."

Far away from them, somebody snickers.

" _You truly would, you truly would_ ," babbles a voice in the distance, far high up where nobody can hear or see her, telescope on her eye as she mimics Lillie with soft mockery. "This is ridiculous. Look at them."

"We have been looking at them for fifteen minutes, Moon," says Gladion, leaning over the railing right by her side. "I still don't get what's the purpose of this."

She still looks through her telescope. " _This_?"

"We– _you're_ spying on them."

Moon lowers her telescope and turns to Gladion with folded arms. "Okay, that's _misleading_ ; I'm not spying on her. I'm her bodyguard and I'm on duty– you're the one who tagged along and you're my accomplice in crime!"

Her grin both pleases and unsettles him. "You grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the library to come here."

"And you didn't protest. Clear evidence of being an accomplice," Moon continues, taking out her telescope and looking through it; she grunts and sighs, shaking her head. "See? Now I lost them!"

Gladion sighs. "I don't understand your fixation with them lately. Did somebody hit you on the head? You said you're not interested in love and all those things."

"Look, I'm not interested in love at _all_ ; it's weird, I don't get it, but that doesn't mean I'm _blind_. Just– look at them." Well, he can't look at them because they have gone somewhere they can't follow, but he gets the message. "They're whipped for each other. I can't take all that sweetness and the tension and all that stuff. People have asked me if they're engaged."

He rolls his eyes in exasperation. As much as Gladion secretly shares Moon's sentiment – though he doesn't agree with its intensity– he knows that Zeffarei's townsfolk is always full of unfounded gossip. Moon's knack for theatrics doesn't help either. "I don't think it's _that_ bad."

"Gladion, the same night I came back from Bakiria like, weeks ago, I walked into the palace and found Lillie and Hau having a romantic dinner in the royal kitchen. Imagine being out of town for so long and stumbling into that scene." Moon shakes her head, biting her lip. "I just wanted to get a sandwich and I got Hau and Lillie sharing a bowl of spaghetti."

He arches an eyebrow. "How do you know it was romantic?"

"They had candles."

"It was probably dark."

"Still counts as romantic," concludes Moon, lifting one finger. "We both know they're all over each other. They're in love, whipped for each other, into each other, all heart-eyes for each other. They're the book definition of love, Gladion."

Moon swiftly pulls up her telescope, looking for them, and Gladion leans further over the railing, trying to catch her eye with a deadpan as she goes quiet. Ever since she had come back from Bakiria weeks ago, she had been all over the place: first helping rebuild the Springblossom Academy because 'everyone is so slow she might as well do it herself'; then, she had proceeded to open doors again and busy herself with paperwork whilst helping Lillie around. Sometimes, she would stay over at the palace overnight, reading books with Lillie, or without her.

Gladion had found her a couple of times fast asleep on the library, and he would throw a blanket over her while getting into studying himself; at the same time, she would sometimes stumble with him and throw another cover over him. It's something they have deliberately decided not to talk about, but still do anyway– much like everything in their friendship, it's unspoken but heartfelt.

And her latest fixation had been Lillie and Hau. At first, she had acted rather nonchalant about Hau's very obvious crush on Lillie, but it all changed from one day to another. Gladion is sure she knows something about those two he doesn't, but he refuses to ask lest she gets him deep into her shenanigans.

"I'm still very intrigued about your interest in them as a couple." Moon's lips scrunch into a pout as Gladion's eyes come through her lenses. She lowers her telescope to find him very close to her. "You simply want them to get together? Where did all the emphasis come from?"

"From a place of love for Lillie and Hau. I just want them to be all happy and sappy with each other. They're cute together."

"That's something we have established long ago," Gladion mutters. "But I still don't understand your interest. You said love is boring."

"And it _is_ , but they look super happy with each other and I kinda love that, y'know. It's very wholesome!" Moon smiles brightly, keeping her telescope down for now. It's churned at the edges and stained everywhere– an old heirloom from a ship that has withstood many adventures. "The thing is, they're not… _y'know_."

Moon makes an ambiguous gesture with her hands: she entwines her fingers together, but not quite; then she pushes them away, then together again. "I have no idea what you mean."

"They're not _together_! And it's ridiculous!" Moon exclaims, albeit whispering, as if this is a secret nobody can know about. "I didn't come back from Bakiria to see they're not together yet."

"You left to refill those Talismans, not to give them space to, _you know_."

He makes the same gesture she had just made but purposefully exaggerated to piss her off. He succeeds spectacularly, making her backhand his shoulder with a scoff. He chuckles.

"My point is that they gotta get together already. Whenever Lillie smiles at him, Hau loses his shit and starts hyperventilating– though he's gotten better at it, I guess, and it's not like Lillie's super subtle about it. It's ridiculous." Moon shakes her head, rolling her eyes. "How can they _not_ know they're so into each other? I don't get it."

Gladion sighs. "Have you ever heard of the concept of 'time' and 'space'?"

"Time and space? I don't know about none of that." Ah, of course.

"Maybe they don't want a relationship right now. You don't know if they like each other for sure anyway– Lillie could be humoring Hau, and Hau could be just _very_ fond of Lillie," Gladion suggests, swallowing. "Okay, that sounds a little bit improbable, but you get the idea."

Moon puts her elbow on the railing, hand under her cheek with a dare he say _endearingly annoying_ smile filling her cheeks. "Aww, look at your sister complex. It's growing so much."

"I _don't_ have a sister complex."

"And you also know that they _very likely_ are into each other, right?"

A smirked sigh. "Again, you're too insistent about this issue to believe you when you say love is boring."

Moon directs a pissed off glare at him that he deflects with a widening smirk. Moon huffs. "Okay, you know what? You got a point. Maybe Hau is simply _excessively_ attracted to Lillie and Lillie is _excessively_ kind to Hau, but I'm still gonna be their secret, sneaky angel of love."

"Somebody who knows next to nothing about love being their secret guardian sounds untrustworthy, to say the least."

"I know!" Moon is all grins and smiles and reckless innocence; the same old Moon he's gotten to know. Nothing changed, nothing new. "And _that_ is why you're gonna help me!"

Gladion clears his throat. "I stand corrected: two people who know next to nothing about love being love angels is the worst idea imaginable, not to mention that I'm not particularly interested or involved in their love lives to care."

She arches an eyebrow. " _Oh_?" it's a suggestive sigh. It's bad news. "So you don't care about your precious little sister's love life?"

There it is, the _bait_. Moon enjoys throwing those to get a rise out of him, both for good and bad, and she _always_ succeeds without a single fail. Moon is an expert at making him jump and dance for her, and getting him into her plans, as harmless as they are, is a part of the gig, too. She's tilting her head fro

m one side to another, scheming, entertaining her own ideas and Gladion has to wonder _why_ he's still standing there with her.

"Arceus. You're tugging at a sister complex I don't have."

"I can still tell you're thinking about it," Moon says, almost singing in a tease. A cheeky smile tugs at her lips as she swings her gaze to him. "It's not rocket science, Gladbag. It's about them being happy."

She releases his eyes then, directing them to the open space of the Flabebé Park under them. Gladion follows her gaze to find Hau and Lillie walking out of the park, laughing, and Moon's stare has grown fond and gentle. Her lips are curled without a tremble, without exaggeration or deceit; it's genuine love for those two, genuine fondness. The raw affection in her eyes takes him aback.

Moon being all soft and giggly for something as ridiculously sweet as love – even if it's not for herself – is unprecedented. Her innovative ways to blow him away with one single show of honesty continue impressing him.

Gladion smiles to himself.

"I guess I could help out a little." He feels her tense beside him. "But whatever crazy things you pull off are _your_ doing. I'm not going to involve myself any further than support. And occasional nudges in the right direction."

Wide-eyed and grinning, Moon jumps to his side, looking at him with beaming eyes. "That's my Gladbag! Look at you, growing out of your edgy sister complex! I'm so proud of you!"

He doesn't pull away. "I'm _not_ edgy!"

"Sure thing! Whatever floats your boat!" Moon grabs his arm and pulls him away from the railing. "C'mon, we gotta start planning things! We need to put the pieces together. We're gonna be the best team of investigators ever!"

"I'm still of the opinion that we shouldn't be meddling."

Her fingers clasp about his wrist; not quite his hand. It's a secure way for her to drag him along wherever she wants. Even with broken arms, legs, ribs, and skull, she would make him follow her to her own grave in their twisted game of hide and seek.

For now, though, he's not complaining. He's also curious as to where this could lead.

* * *

"Thank you all for coming to this… rather improvised meeting. I had not planned on holding one this soon into Lady Lillie's–"

"Wicke, I already told you that you should call me by name."

"Of course, Lady Lillie." Wicke clicks her pen out, then in again. Under the light of the Bellossom Inn – empty this late in the night – she looks a little more tired than usual. It makes the impending issue look graver. "I didn't think I would call all of you so soon to a meeting, but I believe this is a matter that cannot be held back anymore."

The four warriors turn quiet. Their expressions turn stale in worry. They have heard this speech before many times: it's always about the 'thing that needs to be said' and it's _never_ good news. It had been Blackring Pirates first, and then Lusamine, then Cyrus, and Gladion has lived enough trauma in a year to endure another set of dangers this soon. He needs to rest. Everyone needs to rest.

Moon is drumming her fingers on her forearm, arms folded. She has the same opinion, it seems.

Wicke turns to Lillie. "Ma'am, you're leaving."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Oh, I am not firing you– I don't have that authority anyway, but what I'm telling you to do is, basically, to take a vacation." Wicke smiles warmly at the woman, watching Lillie blink several times.

Each blink accounts for the many words she's trying to say, yet none come out. Gaping, Lillie stammers a mix of jumbled expressions that Moon understands, one of her hands on Lillie's shoulder. "A vacation?"

Wicke nods. "Well, this is something I should have told Lady Lillie the very first time she came to the palace, but I held things off when the situation with Cyrus arose, and I wanted to wait for Moon to come back as well. It was all a matter of timing." Her eyes flicker to Gladion, as well. "I believe you should do the same thing, Young Master."

"Sorry, but I'm not sure I understand, Wicke," says Lillie timidly.

"You have always wanted to explore what lies outside of the Aedus Empire. While you have fulfilled part of that wish, I don't think it was under the best of circumstances. Things will be calm here for a while, so this is the perfect opportunity for you to explore all you wish to." She looks at Moon now, who regards her with an odd mixture of skepticism and excitement. She's tapping her foot on the tiled floor. "I thought that Moon could accompany you, as well as Hau and the Young Master."

There is so much to be said about Wicke's suggestion that Gladion finds wrong; Lillie is the one to call it out. "But, I'm the Empress! I can't simply up and leave as I desire!"

"I have contacted your trusted chancellors to run all the errands you might have pending– which, by the way, amounts to zero. You have the whole month clear of important duties, and the rest can be easily deviated to the Council in charge."

Hau leans close to Gladion. He nudges his side. "Dude, how much power does Wicke even have?"

Gladion swallows. " _Lots_."

"But– _Zeffarei_! I'm their Empress, and I love this town! I can't simply leave it to its own demise to have fun out in the middle of nowhere!" Lillie insists, balling her fists. "It's my responsibility to stay here in case another Cyrus comes up! I am the heiress of an entire Dominion, I–!"

"Lady Lillie, _please_ , everyone knows you loathe this job. I would even dare say there have been dares going on about it– truly questionable behavior, but still plausible." Everyone's eyes widen at that. "You're a wonderful woman, but we can tell you are rather… constricted in the fabrics of sovereignty. The Madam did not leave the easiest job behind her, and I have been made aware that your wishes lay far away from that throne."

Wicke's eyes perch themselves on Moon's nonchalant figure for enough time for Lillie to put the pieces together. "You _traitor_."

Moon grins. "C'mon, Lils. You're a totally awesome Empress, but you'd look better off the throne and not on it. No offense, it's just the truth," explains she, hands behind her head. She's pleased with herself, ignoring Lillie. "I think Ilima told Wicke about it, though, not me. I just kinda went along with it."

Gladion blinks. "Ilima?"

"Moon and the Captain had… a cup or two a few days after she came back from Bakiria. I'm afraid to inform you all that he doesn't take lightly to alcohol, whilst Moon does it worryingly well."

She grins. "Thank you!" Though it had not been a compliment. "I was kinda lightheaded, though. He invited me to this fancy liquor and I had to drag him home. He was wasted. It was a mess."

"That's not the point, though," cuts in Wicke, clearing her throat. "Lady Lillie, I am giving you full permission to leave Zeffarei at the shortest notice with as many suitcases as necessary. A month's holiday will be fine. It surely won't compensate for all the emotional trauma you have had to endure these months– years, even, but it's a start." Lillie tries to interrupt her; Wicke doesn't let her. "There is no room for objections. If you don't comply, I will ask the chancellors in charge to send you into a temporary exile, and I must let you know that they will accept my request without a single thought."

Gladion watches her flash through stages of realization. There is a stubborn reluctance at first, then a flash of annoyance with puffed cheeks and tense shoulders, but it all goes away with a sigh and a guilty smile, caressing her forehead in a tired gesture. "I… would not mind that vacation at all. I don't want to leave Zeffarei, though."

"It will only be for a short time. You will be in the company of your friends _and_ your big brother, whom I believe you still have to bond with."

"I… can't leave, though," Gladion says through gritted teeth. The amount of eyes on him is enough pressure to foreshadow incoming objections. "I got things to study, and many books to read, and–"

"Young Master, you have passed your tests with excellent marks." Gladion parts his lips to object; Wicke, again, doesn't let him. "Your knowledge on all necessary matters is well over the minimum, and dare I say the standard. You don't need to keep on studying anymore."

"I–"

"You will leave with Lady Lillie, as well. You deserve some vacations, too, but without the hassle of pirates and dark syndicates chasing after you. Whatever you wish to do after that is up to you– but for now, you need to take some weeks off and unwind, all without trouble." Wicke turns to Moon now. "Which takes me to you."

Moon lifts a hand. "Good evening."

Wicke patiently takes a chair from under a table, dragging it to sit right in front of Moon. "I want you to go with them as well. I… am aware of your circumstances prior to this mess and the emotional trauma during the encounter with Cyrus, so you need these weeks off as well. Your presence will also be required as Lady Lillie's bodyguard, but considering that her powers have finally awakened, this is merely an excuse."

The tilt of her words, hanging unfinished in suggestion, make Moon arch her eyebrows. "What's the catch?"

Wicke merely extends her hand.

"You will be traveling unarmed."

Gladion chokes a cough. Moon blinks. "Excuse me?"

"I trust that the lack of weapons will make you less prone to provoking the many Kandrus Guards you will encounter on your voyage. To put it simply, you will appear more mellow. And I don't want your body to endure any more physical trauma– I have heard you have been working hard in the Springblossom Academy as well, so all I shall ask of you is to simply relax."

Gladion wordlessly grabs Moon's wrist and lifts her hand. "You will have to chop these off, then."

Moon wiggles it in agreement. "Yeah, I can still kick ass with my bare hands."

The blond nods eagerly. He will _never_ say how awesome that is, knowing that Wicke is not a fan of Moon's knack for trouble and fun.

Wicke sighs placidly. "That's fine. I am aware of Moon's abilities in the martial arts area, but it's a matter of practicality and saving you trouble with the Kandrus Empire. I won't let Lillie miss out on that Dominion's beautiful places–"

" _Very_ scarce pretty places," remark Moon, Gladion, and Hau at the same time.

"– just because of a crime. I will try to sort something out with Captain Ilima, see if we can do anything about that aspect. But you will _not_ travel with any daggers, blades, or knives of any sort."

"You're talking to me as if I was a psychopath," Moon deadpans.

"I'm being this… _emphatic_ because I nearly wrote a legally binding document per which you wouldn't be able to do these things. Me meticulously spelling these points out for you is my way of sparing you the legal nonsense of the process." Moon sighs, but says nothing about it; she probably knows better than to complain. "I know you only carry them for safety, your own and your comrades'. This is a matter of practicality rather than… your vigorous fighting."

Gladion notices that Wicke is being extremely tactful with the way she words all of it, much to his amusement; and Moon sighs again, her head hanging a bit lower. "What if somebody tries to sneak up behind Lils and I need my daggers?"

"Then, the Young Master or Hau can take care of it."

Her expression hardens in determination. "What if some sickos tie me up and I need my daggers to free myself?"

"Don't worry, they will drop you into the river the moment you start bickering with them," Gladion comments dryly. Hau stifles laughter behind his hand. "And if that happened, as remotely possible as it might seem, we will go after you."

"Yeah, dude," says Hau. "And it ain't like you're gonna let yourself get kidnapped, right?"

Gladion remembers those words _too_ well, and Moon seems to do so as well. They share a complicit look, and she ends up smirking while he puffs out a snicker. She tilts her chair backward confidently. "I sure wouldn't. I'm gonna have a tough time peeling my apples, though."

Lillie turns to her amicably, speaking from the other side of the sofa they're all sitting on. "I can peel them for you! Oh, maybe there is a spellbook for those kinds of things!"

Wicke shakes her head, smiling softly. "I believe there is nothing about the matter– at least in the palace. This trip should also serve as a training experience for Lady Lillie, albeit a bit lighter. I know of the many adventures you three have partaken in, and I would prefer if nobody had a near brush with death for once."

"We're gonna go training!?" exclaims Hau, nearly springing out of his chair and bouncing with excitement. He turns to Lillie with brilliant eyes. "We're gonna train, finally! We're gonna have so much fun!"

Lillie nods her head up and down eagerly, squirming with excitement as well, grinning. Moon leans to a side, close to where she can whisper to Gladion. "Told you. He's whipped."

Gladion nods very slowly.

"Ahem." The excited duo and the cunning two turn to Wicke again, who has her hands on her lap. The pen she's been fidgeting with is clipped on the pocket of her coat. "I think this should be all. Please, leave as soon as possible so your vacation will be the longest possible. I truly would like for all of you to take a rest– and then carry on with your lives."

The owner of the inn takes her leave after a few goodbyes, saying that she has a few issues to take care of before calling it a night. Gladion and company take their conversation outside into the crisp night of Zeffarei. Gladion and Moon are wearing their own jackets, but Gladion notices that Hau has none on him but Lillie is wearing one too oversized to be her own.

His thoughts are quickly interrupted. Moon has one last thing to comment, walking down the stairs out of the inn. "I can't believe Wicke is sending us to a compulsory vacation in _winter_. I get that all of us have made the wise decision that heat sucks–"

"Heat is _great_ ," bites Hau chidingly. Lillie giggles.

"But it's gonna be a _nightmare_ to camp outside. There are a _lot_ of storms in winter in the Kandrus Empire, and it snows a lot."

"We have slept under the rain before," Gladion informs her. "It wouldn't be new at all to sleep with rolling thunder over us."

"This will shock you, but I wouldn't want to get zapped by some naughty lightning while I sleep on my precious high branches. Some of us have standards of commodity, Gladbag. I'm not gonna conform to sleeping on the ground like a lost puppy."

"Then I guess lightning won't conform with sparing your life, either," Gladion jokes, earning laughs from Hau and Lillie. Moon throws him a glare, but it lacks the bite to make him angry and irritated. If anything, she's humoring him. "Where are we supposed to go anyway? We have absolute liberty with this, don't we?"

"Well, not really," says Lillie softly. "We should notify Captain Ilima about this first. He's working in Dawn Square Market at the moment, so that should be our first stop." Ugh. Gladion is certainly not looking forward to that. Something in Ilima simply puts him off and he can't yet explain _what_ it is. "Oh, I would also… like to visit Mother one last time before departing. That would be nice of us."

That's a very delicate subject Gladion has not expected to arise. Any mention of Lusamine is always made under the premise of necessity, convenience or obligation, but _never_ willful intent to dwell into the subject that is _her_ and her past. Gladion is instantly conflicted, and Hau notices this.

"Are you sure?" asks Hau tactfully, darting his eyes from Gladion to Lillie. "Ain't that a kinda sensitive topic now? It's been… a few months, yeah, but I thought she was gonna stay under the rug."

"Yeah, isn't it a bit too soon?" adds Moon, thoughtful. "I understand that you need to visit her, but…"

Lillie is the most determined one out of them all, frowning very gently to convey her conviction. "Yes, I'm sure. If anything, I would rather do it now and forget later when we're traveling around." She turns to him. "You should also visit Mother, big brother. Maybe she remembers you now."

Gladion has chosen to ignorantly believe that Lusamine's contact with the dark arts years ago had provoked losing her memory of her son; be it rage because he had been taken away, or be it the Ivoreed's intent for whatever reason. He doesn't know if she will remember him now that things are apparently cleared out– hell, he doesn't even know if Lusamine is lucid now.

One thing is for sure, though: Lillie is right. The sooner they get this done, the sooner they will get the thorn out of their system.

He nods curtly, tense. "I guess you're right. But where should we go after that?"

Moon lifts her eyes to the sky. Gladion is constantly caught staring at the little twinkles in her irises whenever she does that. It's like second nature. "Maybe we could… go to Gemstone Village first. Winter is the festive season for the Kandrus Empire, so I bet there will be interesting things to see there. We could drop by Taeyong's shop while we're at it." She tilts her head to a side. Gladion watches Lillie follow the motion with a tilt of her own. It's so cute he feels as though he's been punched on the guts. "We've gotta drop by the Jaguar Farmlands to greet Guzma if he's there– oh, and Altaria Bay! Lillie's gotta go there! It's probably the prettiest place out of them all."

Lillie turns to Gladion with a pleasant smile. "Maybe we could visit Ludwig Town, too? I would love to visit your hometown if that's okay."

"I… we will have to see about that." Gladion pulls Moon's words and organization into a mental map. He had long ago stopped bothering to take maps with him, so he's been relying on his instincts to guide himself around. "That's an _insanely_ roundabout way to visit the Dominion, though."

"And Wicke gave us an _insane_ amount of time. The longer we take, the happier she'll be. I'm just looking out for her, Gladbag," Moon explains, grinning all the while. "And I guess we're leaving tomorrow, right? We can leave after breakfast if that's cool with you all."

"That'd be awesome!" says Hau. His arms fold themselves behind his head, relaxed. Lillie's eyes are fixed on him – his arms, Gladion notices – for a short moment. Her eyes widen when she notices Gladion has noticed, and blushes dimly. "The sooner we get the show on the road, the better! I gotta ask Guzma's mom for malasadas– they were _so_ good!"

Gladion sighs; it's a fond sound. "Only you would look forward to a trip this big just for the food."

"What can I say? I'm ravenous, dude! Sorcerers gotta keep their stomachs full!"

Laughter echoes in the winds of Zeffarei as the four warriors walk home. Watching them laugh with his own chuckles dying down, he finds himself enjoying the noise, enjoying the boisterous tone of their laughter with a very gentle smile.

This is always fun.

He has missed this. He has missed them; and he's going to make the best out of this, he promises himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> do you guys remember when Gladion, Moon and Hau would dream of having a place to belong. do you realize they HAVE A HOME NOW AND GODDAMMIT ISN'T THE ARC'S SUMMARY SO SATISFYING TO READ. It's the exact same as arc 1's summary except you don't feel like being depressed once you've read it :)
> 
> SO WE KICK OFF THIS ARC WHERE I PROMISE I:  
> 1\. won't kill anyone  
> 2\. there will be no angst  
> 3\. no drama  
> 4\. just FLUFF
> 
> this arc is just a whole fuckton of fluff. everyone's gonna go on a trip to discover themselves, cook, get in trouble, dance, fall in love and BE FLUFFY. it's like a fanfiction version of the real thing except this is not a real thing and this was just born because I didn't wanna make lona kiss in arc 3. will they kiss here? MAYHAPS
> 
> will haulillie kiss in this one? MAYHAPS but they're for sure much outwardly cute than lona which is weird but THEY'RE SO CUTE GAH
> 
> "I know! Man, I would make a great Emperor myself, wouldn't I?" Hau laughs. / Lillie's eyes soften. "You truly would." / Far away from them, somebody snickers. / "You truly would, you truly would," - Moon is Captain Haulillie
> 
> "Her grin both pleases and unsettles him. "You grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the library to come here." / "And you didn't protest. Clear evidence of being an accomplice," - Gladion is also aboard the ship coughcough
> 
> "Moon being all soft and giggly for something as ridiculously sweet as love – even if it's not for herself – is unprecedented. Her innovative ways to blow him away with one single show of honesty continue impressing him. / Gladion smiles to himself." - he'swhippedcougcougovhgjfkd
> 
> "The tilt of her words, hanging unfinished in suggestion, make Moon arch her eyebrows. "What's the catch?" / Wicke merely extends her hand. / "You will be traveling unarmed." - Wicke is SO DAMN SMART I LOVE HER
> 
> "Moon lifts her eyes to the sky. Gladion is constantly caught staring at the little twinkles in her irises whenever she does that. It's like second nature." - Gladion is gonna do this fluffy shit VERY often in this arc I hope you're ready for this shit
> 
> "Maybe we could visit Ludwig Town, too? I would love to visit your hometown if that's okay." - Mirai Setting up For Disaster While Promising no Conflict: volume MMVII
> 
> SO THE ARC WILL BE JUST THAT. POINTLESS FLUFFY PLOTLESS LONASHIPPING WITH HAULILLIE AND MOON TRYING TO DESTROY EVERYONE WITH HER BARE HANDS I HOPR YOU ENJOY HGBJKFLDLPSÀ


	2. Thick Blankets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group travels to Dawn Square Market to visit an old friend. Gladion makes a couple of discoveries: one is long overdue, the other is troublesome.

Gladion feels old as time when he walks into Dawn Square Market. It has been a while since he's been here, and as fate would have it, he was always there in the preface of a catastrophe. One of them had been the encounter with one of his dear friends and his ass getting kicked from the moon and back; the next had been the escalation to said friend's death– to say he's unconsciously tense about being here is an understatement.

When they are walking to the town, Moon slants a hand on his shoulder, exercising great strength. "Can you _relax_ a little? I could pluck some marshmallows on you and make me some treats."

"We're always here before some sort of tragedy happens. I don't like that pattern."

A wisp of understanding crosses her eyes. Gladion nearly misses it.

"It's just a pattern. Your body's here but you still got your head in those ugly economics books," Moon notes, a finger under her chin in cheery contemplation. "You're impossible. You better not have bought none of those books with you."

Gladion sinks his brows in confusion; he looks at Moon, who is now observing Hau and Lillie as they walk a few feet ahead of them. "I was reading economics yesterday."

"Yeah."

"...After we all left to bed." A knowing smirk curls his lips upward. "Did you stay overnight in the library again? And you _spied_ on me?"

Moon looks at him for two exact seconds before swiftly marching away from him, brisk and dignified. Shaking his head, Gladion jogs to catch up with her at the entrance of the town.

Dawn Market Square is washed by the early winter rains and thin clouds scattered across the blue sky, but none of that humidity is present in the air, nor is the rain. There are puddles on the ground that Moon and Hau leap across, which Gladion and Lillie simply walk around. The plaza is as big and structureless as he remembers it; it's all walls, buildings skirting the grassy patches and everything dotted with trees all around. Gladion can see the roof of the Bellossom Inn – just the tip of its golden ornaments – from the center of the plaza.

Lillie looks around, opens her arms and spins with glee. "This place is so open! I never thought Captain Ilima would work in a place like this!"

"It's not like all of this is his state or anything– it's more of a glorified square." Moon looks around as well, smile content and fond. "With markets. And a garrison. And I think that's a spa."

Moon points nonchalantly to a building to their left, one of the few that stand alone on the patchy grass. It has a tall ceiling – wow, shocker – with pink tiles and ornaments of salmon colors blowing in the wind, surrounded by wooden walls all the way to the walls of the town. There is a very mild zephyr carrying the wastes of a storm around, but the temperatures are pleasant; it wouldn't be entirely bad to take a look at that later.

Hau is of the same opinion, apparently, rushing to the building to check if what Moon has said is true. "Dude, she's right! These are some mighty hot springs– we _gotta_ check them out later!"

"The Aedus Empire has a very strange fixation with hot springs, but I have heard these are of great quality." Lillie's eyes are fixed on the rooftops, nearly in longing admiration. "I have never tried them, though. Mother told me they were for poor and filthy people."

Moon walks over to her and loops her arm around hers amicably, grinning. "I guess we gotta try it out then, right? I heard these are places where _lots_ of people come for purification rites and all that stuff. It's kinda nifty!"

"It sounds like one of those rites you would hear about in horror books," says Gladion, flatly.

Moon backhands him on the shoulder. "Don't be a meanie! We're gonna have lots of fun! Tonight is gonna be a ladies' night– no boys, no men, just Lils and me." Lillie, complacent to a fault with any of Moon's ideas, nods eagerly. Moon looks over her shoulder to see Hau jumping up and down in agreement, whereas Gladion is giving her an odd look.

Moon blinks in askance. Gladion shoves his hands in his pockets. "I'm not into these fancy things. It all sounds too elegant for me."

Her eyes narrow. "You're just squeamish about the whole deal, aren't you?"

"That too, yeah."

"It's gonna be fine! It's probably just gonna be you and me, anyway," Hau grins, treading big steps towards Gladion. "I think most hot springs are all about pushing girls and boys to, like, different ends of the world so we don't even see each other." Hau looks at Lillie and Moon, tilting his head. "Maybe we can arrange something, though."

Moon blinks. "If you take a step in our spring's direction I _swear_ I'll punch you out of my sight."

The blonde sneers at her, humorously mild. "Wicke told you to stay at your best behavior, Moon."

"I did that too, once upon a time. That's where the body count started for her," sighs Gladion, ignoring how Moon takes a step in his direction and Lillie makes her take it back. "But I guess we can give it a try. I kinda want to see what those little guys there look like from up-close."

Hau turns to the building. "Eh? Which ones?"

"Those ones."

Gladion points at a small window at the top of the building. A white object shaped like a wind chime blows gently, hanging from a window top. It has a round top and a mere sheet of paper hanging from it, red at its ends. Recognition flashes past Lillie's green eyes.

"Yes, they are very pretty wind chimes. I have seen a pair of those in the Driftveil Market a few times before, but Mother never let me buy them. They are quite noisy," Lillie explains, taking a few steps closer to the building and squinting. "The seller once told me that they have very big bells inside of them. They are shaped after the wisp spirits of Lunaria Plains, the Chimechos."

"That's one funky name," comments Moon, more impressed than anything. "Wisp spirits? Aren't those kind of dangerous?"

"They are not in the Lunaria Plains anymore, sadly. It's only a tale, anyway." Lillie hums. "They used to haunt the plains in search of food. The legends say they used to make the stars twinkle in space with their songs, and they would ring their bells loudly to keep the ghosts and evil spirits at bay. The Lunaria Plains have these berries that look like stars–"

"Tamato berries," says Gladion.

"Yes, Tamato berries," Lillie nods, smiling. "Whenever the night would fall, the Chimechos would nibble on the berries and go back to the sky. It gets very windy here in the Dominion, so many crafters have designed wind chimes that take after them to keep the spirits back from their homes. They are super pretty."

Moon nods at this. Gladion has always been under the impression that Moon has the best eyesight out of the four of them – her being an assassin and all that jazz – but she also squints to get a better view of the little white charm. "Ah, I've seen that before somewhere. I think in Dirftveil Market too– and maybe in Gemstone Village. We could get you one when we go there!"

"Really?" asks Lillie, jogging to Moon's side with a smile. "Is that village very far away?"

"It's not far away." Lillie gets even more excited. "Uh, not for me, at least. I guess it is for you three. It's gonna take us a few days to get there, but we're gonna stop by for sure."

Lillie's shoulders sag a little, but she springs back into excitement a second later. "That's fine! I truly wanna see one of them from up-close. Gladion also told me that Gemstone Village is a super pretty place to visit, too!"

Moon grins cheekily. "It is! You're gonna love it so much!"

Watching Moon and Lillie interact is like taking a look into an alternate dimension of some sort where Lillie is a free girl with the whole world at her feet and Moon is but a mere catalyst– and Moon being a catalyst, a bystander, is an oddity in many pleasing ways. She smiles when Lillie speaks, she's a tad softer and much more honest than she ever is whenever she's on her own. Lillie makes Moon shine bright just like Moon takes Lillie's hand and shows her the world.

Gladion folds his arms and smiles, watching them talk, eyes focused on Moon's laughter at some of Lillie's jokes. Hau catches him in the act and his snicker draws his attention to him. Gladion huffs.

Hau's attention is shifted to Lillie again, grinning. Embers of mischief coat his expression in a sinful tease. "I could try my hand at making you one of those! I know some stuff about carpentry and all that."

"That would be incredibly kind of you, but it's safe to assume they would take a lot of time to craft," she says kindly, smiling apologetically. "I wonder how much they will cost…"

"It's fine!" Moon beams. "I can always grab you one with my–"

"Pocket money," interrupts Gladion dryly. Hau laughs. Moon's eyes become round, and she bites the inner sides of her cheeks. "Not your 'super pretty and skilled hands'. But with your pocket money."

Moon blinks at him. "I sometimes really think you're obsessed with me, Gladbag."

"You wish."

The group agrees to drop by the hot springs after they have informed Ilima of their departure, which they set out to do now. Ilima's office sits within the main building of the town, serving as a guard station of sorts like Moon kindly informs them. She's been there before, or so she says, because Ilima would invite her over to spar with his men at times.

"He trains his minions very well, I gotta say– but they're still kinda weak. Compared to us, at least!" She grins wide and big, jumping ahead of them and landing on top of the stairs to the entrance. "Imagine a whole army asking you to train with them. It's _so_ uplifting!"

" _So_ uplifting that your ego is over the sun and you're walking right over it," chuckles Gladion, going up the stairs to meet with her. "I would watch my step if I were you."

Moon squares her chest and folds her arms; he's taller than her, but the confidence and challenge in her eyes provide extra elevation. "I would watch _yours_ next time you go down these stairs, otherwise I'll– _ow_!"

Hau pinches Moon on her side and grabs her elbow, leading her into the office. "You two will be the death of me someday."

Lillie, catching up with them, curls her fingers around the straps of her back as she watches Moon being dragged indoors. "Are you two always like that?

Unsure what to answer, Gladion shrugs; it's never as simple as that when it comes to Moon.

Ilima is, much to their luck, working in his office by the time they come in. The sun is high and his stack of paperwork is, as well, but when he hears Moon causing a commotion in the hallway, he walks into the lobby with his everlasting pleasant smile. Gladion hates it with a passion.

"Ah, there you are! It's been too long to be true, has it not?" When he makes his presence vocally known, Moon wrangles her elbow out of Hau's grasp and waves at him casually. Hau nods, Lillie nods a bit more and Gladion mutters a small 'good morning'. "As energetic as ever, huh? Why don't you come in? I have some work on my desk, but I would love to hear what you have been up to for a while. Any distraction is welcome at this point."

Ilima politely leads them into his office. His place of work is stuffed with books and paperwork, more so now than Gladion ever remembers seeing on his desk. There is nothing of substance that catches his eye, other than a pair of blades proudly perched on the right wall of his rectangular office. The air is surprisingly dusty under the beams of winter-full sunlight.

"I apologize for the mess. I wasn't informed of your visit prior to my endeavors, so…"

"In all honesty, neither were we," sighs Lillie, choosing to take a seat in front of the Captain. "Wicke simply sprung all this information on us and we weren't very prepared. Everything you see is pretty much improvised."

He nods with a placid smile. He's always gentle. He's always suave. Gladion absolutely can't stand all of that charm. "Ah, I see. You must tell me everything about that. I'm happy to see all of you again." Much to everyone's surprise, his smile widens as he looks at Moon. "You look fairly better than when we last sparred, Moon. A sight for sore eyes."

Wait. What the fuck?

Gladion's eyebrow twitches, and he swears Ilima spares him a teasing glance in his direction. Gladion furrows his brow, confused, and Ilima's smile turns into a dare he say _knowing_ smirk– but what does he know? Is there anything there is to know?

Why does Gladion feel so _not okay_ with whatever Ilima is planning, if he's planning anything at all?

Unabashed by Ilima's smooth comment, she nods. "Of course. Your eyes gotta be sore after all this reading. Your office is a mess." The Captain's expression slackens the slightest bit, perplexed. "But yeah, I'm fine. We're all fine. And alive. Which matters a lot."

"Yeah, it's… been a crazy ride, man," grimaces Hau, swallowing. "Things have been kinda hectic around Zeffarei lately. Wicke basically summoned us and kicked us out of Zeffarei for a well-deserved vacation."

The Captain laughs merrily. "That sounds lovely; and very much like her. She's both parts brilliant and unpredictable, that woman."

Moon puffs her cheeks. "I wouldn't have minded it that much if she had left me off with my daggers. I feel so naked right now it's _absurd_." Ilima is about to reply but Moon shakes her head and sighs. "It's whatever. We're just here to inform you that we're gonna take Lillie on vacation."

Just to make sure, Ilima swings his eyes from Gladion's Silvally to Hau's neck, behind which one can see the tip of his staff showing. "Well, I see she will have a good company, then. Where are you headed to, now?"

"We would like to visit Mother one last time before leaving. It's safe to assume we will be away for a few weeks; or, at least, Wicke won't let us into Zeffarei for a while," says Lillie, smiling gently.

Gladion takes the lead to elaborate. "We will be in the Kandrus Dominion for a while. It's been some time since we last stopped there, and we have a couple of people we would like to see. There are many things Lillie has to see there."

Hau sighs adoringly. " _Malasadas._ "

Moon sighs just as affectionately. " _Gems_."

"And the many cultural values of the Dominion," Gladion coughs, snapping both Moon and Hau out of their reverie.

"I have heard lots of good things." Lillie nods enthusiastically. "I can't wait! We will see so many things and so many places and so many people! Moon told me the Kandrus Dominion has very pretty coasts! And forests!"

Gladion looks at Moon. "You sugar-coated it a little."

Moon nods vehemently. "For the sake of adventure spirit! Though Altaria Bay _is_ super pretty. I'll fight you on this." In all fairness, she has a point. "Besides, we had so much fun there! She's gonna have the best time of her life!"

"Only you would call being chased by an entire Empire _fun_."

Moon's bottom lip sticks out in complaint; Gladion smirks.

Ilima laughs again. "Ah, you two will never change, huh? Especially Moon." Again, his eyes preen on Moon for a second longer than necessary. For whatever ungodly reason, it ticks Gladion off. "You are as chipper and laid-back as usual. It certainly is good to know things like these never change."

Moon catches up with Ilima's strange intentions, blinking too intensely to be natural. She puts her hands on her hips and clears her throat. "Of course. A fair lady like me can't be any less great than me." Her response is curt, a little sharp. She doesn't seem to be entirely sure what Ilima's intentions are, either. "Anyway, we're just gonna be here for today and then leave."

Ilima leans back on his chair, tapping his finger on his jaw. "So you will be staying in the Kandrus Empire, huh? That is awfully serendipitous, considering I will be destined there in a week or so. We might as well meet up there!"

_Please no Arceus for the love of all that's holy–_

Hau grins, nodding. "That'd be dope! The more, the merrier! We gotta catch up!"

A curt, but pleased nod. Ilima's smile is flat, but it's tilted with that sweet coat of charm and dazzling smoothness that never fails to irritate him. "We sure must. And I reckon you must be fairly hungry as well, right? It is nearly time for lunch."

Moon twists her mouth; answering Ilima's question, her stomach rumbles. She makes a face as though she's been given the worst news of her life. "I guess you're right."

After a few laughs at Moon's expense, Hau's rumbling stomach and Moon nearly kicking Gladion through wall after insinuating she went hunt for her food, Ilima guides them to the restaurant in town with mild chatter on the background. His conversation with Lillie is polite and candid, albeit not as grossly flirtatious as he had been with Moon– which is still a _very_ weird thing to think about, in Gladion's opinion, but it's much funnier when Moon blatantly ignores him.

The few times she reacts, though, Moon is shockingly assertive. On their way to the restaurant, she folds her arms and smirks at him; a hypothetical surrender. "You're being very nice to me today, _Captain_. Is there anything this fair lady can do for you?"

"Well, not quite, but…" Ilima stands a couple of feet behind, Moon by his side as the three other warriors approach the door. Noticing Moon has been left behind, they turn in askance. "If I could borrow you for a few minutes, that would be great."

Moon shrugs. "As long as I get food soon, I'm fine with it. You better not try anything funny, though– I'm an unarmed, unprotected and vulnerable lady."

Gladion hears this and sighs. "You being unprotected is unheard of. You could pick up a stick and fend off a whole bear on your own."

"You get my point." Moon waves her hand in their direction, beckoning them away from her. "You guys go on without me. I'll go check what this guy wants from me now."

Gladion has the sneaking suspicion that Ilima might have been using his charm to garner Moon's favor, but he should know it will take a lot more than that. Not like Gladion cares about Moon leaving with Ilima so amicably; not like he cares about how she's laughing at something he just said, or how they are very likely bickering but it looks so awfully mellow and sweet and–

"I know you ain't very fond of Ilima, but you're _seething_ at him." Gladion turns to Hau and Lillie, who are watching him with a rather amused sentiment. "What's up?"

He shakes his head and stomps over to them, hands in his pockets. "I got the feeling he's just trying to woo her to ask for some favor. I hate how she's falling for it. I don't want this trip to go any less smooth than planned."

"Nah, I doubt that's it, dude. They're probably gonna talk about boring stuff– or maybe Ilima just wants to spar with her! That guy is super competitive."

Lillie sighs and nods. "The Captain has… a fairly unique knack for challenges. Despite his very calm behavior, he can be rather wild at times. I wouldn't be surprised if that turns out to be the case."

Hau grabs Gladion's forearm and guides him to the restaurant, smiling with a skip to his step. Gladion has fought with Ilima before, and if there is one thing anybody has to know about that man, is that he's a cunning but careful guy.

"That would be a very foolish thing for Ilima to ask for. We all know Moon doesn't hold back even if it's for training."

The restaurant turns out to be pretty packed with people when they come in. They have to wait a few minutes for a table to be emptied, but they are given a very fortunate table by the window to the patio. Gladion has sat down here before, ages ago, when his leg was in a cast and he was still using crutches. Times were rowdy but simpler and a tad more peaceful.

It is when they are reading the menu that the bell in the restaurant chimes and the door swings open. Somebody stumbles into the establishment and asks for her friends with a dignified voice, completely opposing the tears in her clothes and the bruises on her arms and legs.

"Sorry it took me so long!" It has been around ten minutes only. "Ilima was super demanding today. The nerve of that guy…"

Moon nonchalantly opens the menu on the table and holds it up.

"Moon?"

A sniffle. "Yeah?"

"What… happened to you!?" asks Lillie, alarmed, hurrying to her side to peel off the thin jacket Moon has over her shirt. The fabric is torn up _everywhere_. "You look like a mess!"

Moon shrugs it off and strategically hides her face from Gladion, who sits across from her and is digging daggers into the open menu in her hands. "It's nothing. Ilima wanted to spar, so I gave him a spar."

"Was it Ilima? Or was it a _bear_?" asks Gladion, not at all pleased, but mildly nonchalant about the whole ordeal, too. Hau is looking at her in concern but says nothing, either. Lillie is freaking out.

"It was Ilima. I'm sure of it. If it's not him, I don't know who's lying on a hospital bed right now." Moon scratches her jaw. There is blood where she touches, and she hisses. "He was all like 'I'm gonna beat you up so hard because I have trained lots!' and I just humored him. He's kinda good but not _that_ good, y'know? But he was super happy when we finished. Well, I don't know, he was sorta unconscious and all that but that's just a secondary thing."

Hau swallows thickly. "Is… is he okay?"

"He'll recover." Not a direct admission of guilt. Gladion sighs. "I'm _starving_ , so let's have lunch." A long, drawled out hum. "What's on the menu today?"

Her body is a mess and she certainly should be in the clinic wing of Ilima's office – they will have her check her body out, or Gladion will drag her there if necessary – but she's smiling contentedly to herself; either because she's given Ilima a lesson or because she beat the flirting back into his system, Gladion doesn't know; but he can't be angry at her anymore.

Remembering Ilima's awful flirting and Moon promptly kicking a famous Aedus Captain against Wicke's orders _does_ give him a headache, though.

Perhaps he does need a vacation, after all.

* * *

The hot springs are much, much bigger and cozier than what Gladion has ever imagined. He's never been to such a facility, but it had looked much smaller from the outside than what it actually is inside. It's all salmon walls with paper lamps and a faint incense smell that carries itself to the lobby. It reminds him of the teashop in Gemstone Village in many ways, but things are more dignified and calm than that place, so far away from here.

The furniture is made of wood and everything is toned down to warm colors and quiet solitude. There is a longstanding peace in the air of this building that Gladion doesn't quite understand; it might be because it's his first time there and because he's there under very naïve and free circumstances, but as soon as he steps out of the lobby and into the men's wing of the building, it feels like he's been taken to another universe entirely.

"This place is super cozy– I feel like a new man just by being here." Hau's voice has lowered a few levels in volume, but it's still chipper and energetic. He's reading from a small plank of wood with a few numbers written on it. "It's like the air's giving me a massage. It feels super weird but in a good way, y'know?"

Gladion's eyes look around aimlessly. "I think the word you're looking for is _different_."

"Don't be the vocabulary police now, you get what I mean." Hau turns to him for a short second. He looks guilty. "I didn't tell Moon or Lillie about this but I kinda thought this was… a girls' thing, and all that. It all looks super delicate. I'm scared of the floor caving down under me."

The other chuckles. "It is sort of… unusual for us, but it looks pretty comfortable, both to the eye and the touch." They take a turn to the left. Gladion realizes there aren't too many rooms available in the building. That might be for the best. "I'm a little more skeptical about the whole bathing ordeal. I might stay in the room for that part."

"Don't be a wet blanket, that's gotta be the best part out of them all!" Hau grins, looking behind his shoulder. "Don'tcha think this place looks great? Imagine the hot springs! That's gonna be the _best_ part. Our skin is gonna be spotless the second we rinse off."

Gladion looks to his right. The facility is full of gardens and small private areas with vacant tables and flowers in full bloom under the moonlight, revealed by the parted paper doors that make one side of the hallway. Despite Dawn Square Market's rather humble size as a town, the size of this facility is remarkably big; or, at least, it does a great job at faking it.

All of this grandiosity and elegance, opulent but soft all the way, matches Lillie from head to toe. "I would have never expected Moon to enjoy things like these, but she seemed rather excited to come here earlier."

Hau turns pensive. "She probably did it just to make Lillie happy… though that's not the sorta thing you can fake. Thinking about it, she's into fancy things too. She loves jewelry."

"... only if she has stolen it from somewhere. The holier the place, the better." Gladion tries to stuff his hands into his pockets, but he realizes he's wearing another set of fancier-looking pants without pockets. He sighs– but it's a breathy chuckle, nearly fond in its tone. "She's so stubborn."

Hau, however, doesn't share his enthusiasm; not because he's upset, but because he's deep in thought, murmuring something under his breath. "You and Moon have totally grown fond of each other, eh?"

Gladion's brow sinks pinched. "What do you mean by that?"

"Absolutely nothing, my dude." Hau grins bright and wide, and his steps skid to an abrupt halt by a brightly colored door. "That's our room! Let's leave our stuff here and grab those smooth big bathrobes– Lillie said they look super cozy!"

Shaking his head, Gladion follows him into the room. It's a wide room with two futons on the floor – thank Arceus for that, because sharing beds with a sleep-talking Hau would be a _nightmare_ – and open views to a garden, only limited by a fence and the actual walls of the town coming between them and the Lunaria Plains. There is a gorgeous view of the dark snow-capped mountains in the distance, and the lack of lights in such a small town grant for a complete view of the stars tonight.

The first thing Hau does while Gladion looks around the small garden is grab one of the bathrobes hanging from the wall and jump into the futon, getting changed in a mess of moving blankets while Gladion speaks gently. "The sky looks very pretty tonight."

Hau is shrugging off his shirt and getting into the robe when he looks up. "Really? Lillie's gonna love that. I bet she hasn't seen a clear sky in _ages_ if she's been in Zeffarei for so long!"

Oddly enough, so would Moon. The two might be polar opposites in terms of personalities, but they share quite some interests when it comes to the private field. They both like reading, and Moon has expressed her opinions about the stars and skies very often during their grand voyages.

She had been very engrossed by the sky the last time they met in Zeffarei before her departure. Perhaps, she knew she was going to miss such a view when she landed on Bakiria, and maybe her interest had been but fleeting, like the steps of a grasshopper skidding over a lake. She had been entranced by the view, though, stars glittering her eyes like butterflies in flight.

She had looked smaller, more human, more like her true self, at his reach. It might be why he had hugged her under a sky like this. Maybe, he had noticed he could hold her and he simply had. Maybe, he had been holding himself back from doing this for too long. He has always enjoyed the small but vast, infinite and happy Moon than anything else she has to offer, after all.

Why does such a beautiful sky make him think of _Moon_ , out of all people? Today makes absolutely no sense.

Hau's voice comes from behind, slowly. His feet thump against the thin floor. He gasps. "Woah, the sky looks awesome! The Lunaria Plains are the prettiest place ever– d'you know something we _gotta_ do, someday?"

"What is it?"

"We gotta just take one day off and have a picnic there! Lillie told me she's wanted to do that for ages, but Lusamine was too busy and… kinda scheming to pay attention to that. We're not gonna come back here in a while, though, are we?"

Gladion folds his arms. "I doubt so, but we can have it anywhere else."

Hau's expression remains wistful. Gladion smirks, and the sorcerer blinks out of his thoughts. "What's with that face?"

Knowingly, Gladion smiles. "You _always_ make that face whenever you mention Lillie. You are awfully shameless about your affections."

" _W-What_!? That ain't true at all!" Hau stammers, walking back into the room with flailing arms. He appears to be scared of Gladion when the latter is merely amused by his antics. "You and Moon are just _lunatics_! There ain't nothing going on between me and her!"

"I never insinuated that. I merely stated that you have a thing for Lillie– which is fine, by the way. No need to act so fidgety about it," he says, strangely calm. Hau's expression shifts at this. "I used to think Moon was just being Moon and exaggerating it all, but she has a point. If you don't have a thing for her, then you're very _very_ affectionate with her."

Hau, haunted by silence and loss of words, merely blinks.

"And… you ain't mad about that?"

"Why would I be?"

Hau scratches the back of his neck. "You just met your sister and all that, You met like, months ago after being separated for your whole life. Dude, I know boundaries pretty well, and I didn't wanna cross a line and get you all worked up and protective over your sister– mostly because I get it, y'know. You and her getting back to basics matters much more than this lil' crush of mine."

Hau's respect surprises him greatly, but in a good way. He's always thought of Hau as a very respectful man, in syntony with his feelings and those of his friends, but this extent of empathy and patience put Hau under a whole new light.

Gladion never expected Hau to tap into his personal affairs, much less a lost sister, but if it's Hau – one of the kindest, sweetest and probably most respectable men in this Realm, then he's okay with that.

"I haven't lived without a sister for two decades for me to barge into her life and tell her who she has to date. It's rather evident she… is very fond of you as well, for whatever reason. I don't really care much," states Gladion. His voice is even, but his eyes betray a pang of sharp concern. "You do like her, don't you?"

Under a veil of lingering fear, he nods timidly. "Is it that obvious?"

"You're fairly nice to everyone, so I guess it's only noticeable enough for Moon– but you know nothing escapes her radar," Gladion explains. "I guess it was all a matter of her acting as some sort of bad matchmaker, except it _worked_ and I'm not sure how I feel about that."

Hau curls his legs under him, chuckling. "I mean… it's not like it came outta nowhere– well, it kinda did. It's nothing big or nothing outta those love stories those two read, but Lillie's just so… warm? And so soft and so cute and I just wanna hold her. She brings me this 'cozy family' kinda vibe, y'know? As if I had met her before. And that's nice considering I got amnesia and all that."

That makes sense. Despite Lillie's questionable upbringing and her lack of socialization at an early age, she still manages to remain friendly and open to anything and anyone, which shows how naïve but also how she's not judging and she's perseverant in her fight to establish herself in a normal, regular lifestyle. It's no wonder Hau likes her. Moon _adores_ her like a little sister. She has a natural pull that attracts people to her.

Gladion still has lots to know about her, though. That should be interesting, seeing Hau's view. "I understand. I… guess you don't need my blessings and all that, do you?"

"I mean– would you give 'em to me?"

"I have had the bad luck of meeting bad men everywhere I went. I know people like you are… rare, if not special. Moon knows this, too, and I'm sure Lillie does as well. I know you will treat her right." Gladion takes a step towards him and kneels. "But if you hurt her, and _no, this is not a sister complex thing_ , I will take it all back and it won't be pretty, then. Got it?"

Hau grimaces but nods all the same. "Damn. When I said that you had grown fond of Moon, I didn't mean _similar_ to her, too."

"Right," Gladion nods, promptly ignoring that last comment from Hau. "I will head out to check the springs out, too."

"I'll be there in a sec! I'm gonna have a bite of dinner before that." Hau points at the garments hanging from the wall. His voice is breathy with relief. "Ah, you gotta take one of the robes, though."

Gladion does as asked. He removes his shirt, his pants, and swiftly pulls on the dark bathrobe. It has crimson streaks on the sleeves, elegant but also falling into his line of style. Very correct.

He slips out of the room and bites his lips, stifling a chuckle. Hau has finally admitted that he's into Lillie and he's heard it _first_ before Moon. And not only that, but Hau's respect towards him had inspired a very little sensation of highness in his heart, all quenched by his self-righteousness and respect he has for Hau.

Moon is going to be _overjoyed_ when she hears this.

"Oh Arceus on a pillow, no lavender soap? Absolutely disgraceful."

There she is.

Standing in the hallway with a robe and a pair of fluffy slippers, she barely looks like herself. Her light skin and legs stand out over the rest of her outfit, and her hair looks at last brushed. She no longer looks like a bull has run over her and Gladion decides that's a good thing.

That good thing turns into a bad thing when she hears him walking over to her and turns around.

Gladion makes the awful discovery that Moon looks oddly pleasing in red.

Many people look good in many colors; Hau looks nice in green, Lillie looks angelic in pink, but this is _weird_. Normally his reaction would be a mere acknowledgment of the pleasant color composition and he'd move on with his day; but Moon is wearing red and the color is reeling a physical reaction out of him.

It's as though she has his heart in her hand and she's twisting it. This is a very strange occurrence.

The view of her flippers as she pads close to him, though, lands him on the soft conclusion that she's never looked this cozy and absurdly _normal_. The slippers kind of add to the look, fluffy at the tips.

"Arceus, you look _ridiculous_."

Moon's lips twist and she reaches up to tug at his cheek, making him groan. "You're the ridiculous one. Look at that edgy robe. You look like you're gonna start a rock band and summon a demon."

When she lets go and turns back to the counter, he rubs the sore reddened spot with a mild frown, all half-boiled. "Thanks. You look just as charming with those slippers." Her eyes are on the counter before them. It has bars on top of bars on top of bars of soaps of many colors. "What are you exactly looking for?"

Moon turns to him again. He has moved to her side, peering over the soap bars curiously. "Listen: if I wanna get squeaky clean, I'm gonna grab the best soaps they got in here. They got chamomile, rose, sandalwood–"

"Oh, that sounds fancy."

"And it _is_ fancy– but they don't have lavender!" Moon complains, folding her arms and sagging her shoulders. "It's the most basic scent of them all. I can't believe they haven't covered that spot."

Gladion raises an eyebrow. "Maybe they simply ran out of it."

"Who on their right mind runs out of lavender soap?"

"Maybe a reputable facility that offers it to its customers. That's exactly how marketing works."

Moon waves her hand dismissively. "Don't get me started with that. They wanted to charge me a bunch of coins for a drink. I like the idea of relaxing in the hot springs but I'm not into getting scammed. I could make myself a drink twice as good for half the price." She darts her eyes in his direction, hands on her hips. "By the way, where's Hau?"

"He's eating in the room. He got hungry." A lapse of realization strikes him as Moon peers over the soaps again. "And he also likes Lillie very much."

At first, she says nothing, too raptured by her current fixation to listen to him or catch up with his words; when she does, however, Moon springs up and turns to him, eagerly grabbing his arms.

" _He said it_!?"

"Yep," sassy, he pops out the 'p'. "He admitted it to me a few minutes ago. He was quite embarrassed, to say the least, but now your suspicions can be laid to rest."

Moon, however, is not satisfied. She's crossed her arms again, one hand under her chin, lips pursed and her eyes dart back and forth in thought. She's drumming her foot on the thin wooden floor.

 _Tap, tap, tap, tap_.

"Arceus, what is it now? Aren't you satisfied with that?"

"Of course _not_!" There goes the ambitious little shit again. "Hau is into Lillie and Lillie is sure as _hell_ into him too! That means we gotta do something– you know, like pulling at the strings a little! I'm not gonna force it but we gotta blow the boat a little so it sails."

"Comparing a relationship to a boat is the most ridiculous analogy in existence."

"That doesn't matter!" Moon says, hurriedly clasping her hands on his shoulders so she can speak lower, but also so he hears her. She smells like flowers, and she's grinning. "I gotta think about our next step as their wingman– wait, I'm a woman, so maybe I gotta adjust the name but that's whatever. I'll have to give this a thought before going to bed." Moon takes a step further into the hallway– towards the female wing, he notices, but then she stops. "Also, don't let Hau take a peek at the springs. I'll _murder_ him."

"You know I would never let him do that." Gladion chuckles. "Are you scared he will find you two braiding each other's hair? I don't think he's into… _those_ sorts of hobbies anyway."

"I couldn't care less about Hau's habits, but I'm not gonna let a pervert peek on Lillie just because he's got a crush." Her smile widens. "I'll chop his fingers off one by one."

"I don't think crushes work that way."

Moon huffs. "Neither of us know! That's the mystery of life. And we're gonna make sure those two get together and are happy together. It can't be any other way." She takes a step in the direction of the women's area, shooting him a wink. "Have fun in the bath! Don't fall asleep in it!"

Gladion decides not to answer and simply tells her to, "Same goes to you," and she giggles, waving her hand as she saunters away. A wisp of rose hints coat the air, and she has grabbed a soap bar of the almond variety.

The blob of red fades in the distance. Arceus she looks weird and eye-catching in very strange ways in red. His own confusion has his cheeks heating up for some ungodly reason.

He stumbles away. Goddammit.

Between those weird mushy-mushy bad feelings he got this morning and this sudden and inexplicable embarrassment at the color of _red_ , Gladion decides that he _does_ need a bath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> s e x u a l t e n s i o n a n d j e a l o u s y: BEGIN
> 
> boy I hated writing this chapter but I LOVE HOW IT CAME OUT VRDSJA Moon and Lillie interacting and Moon being soft for her and Gladion noticing it and being soft for Moon and Hau teasing him and Ilima being a little prick (he knows something) and Gladion, like the stunted jerk he is just DOESN'T KNOW WHAT HE'S FEELING but that's what this arc is for dw this is just the BEGINNING
> 
> "You look fairly better than when we last sparred, Moon. A sight for sore eyes." / Wait. What the fuck?" - Gladion is jealous but he can't know it yet
> 
> "She had been very engrossed by the sky the last time they met in Zeffarei before her departure. Perhaps, she knew she was going to miss such a view when she landed on Bakiria, and maybe her interest had been but fleeting, like the steps of a grasshopper skidding over a lake. She had been entranced by the view, though, stars glittering her eyes like butterflies in flight." - Gladion is pinning for Moon so FUCKING hard here I'M SCREAMING
> 
> "You do like her, don't you?" / Under a veil of lingering fear, he nods timidly. "Is it that obvious?" - HE FINALLY FUCKING ADMITTED IT. HAU IS IN LOVE WITH LILLIE. NOW WE CAN GET THE SHOW ON THE FUCKING ROAAAAAAAAAAD
> 
> "I have had the bad luck of meeting bad men everywhere I went. I know people like you are… rare, if not special. Moon knows this, too, and I'm sure Lillie does as well. I know you will treat her right." Gladion takes a step towards him and kneels. "But if you hurt her, and no, this is not a sister complex thing, I will take it all back and it won't be pretty, then. Got it?" - Gladion adores Hau but he also will p r o t e c c
> 
> "Moon is going to be overjoyed when she hears this. / "Oh Arceus on a pillow, no lavender soap? Absolutely disgraceful." / There she is." - I love these two sm
> 
> That good thing turns into a bad thing when she hears him walking over to her and turns around.
> 
> Gladion makes the awful discovery that Moon looks oddly pleasing in red.
> 
> "Many people look good in many colors; Hau looks nice in green, Lillie looks angelic in pink, but this is weird. Normally his reaction would be a mere acknowledgment of the pleasant color composition and he'd move on with his day; but Moon is wearing red and the color is reeling a physical reaction out of him. / It's as though she has his heart in her hand and she's twisting it. This is a very strange occurrence." - Gladion, darling, you're turned on. It's fine. FUCKING get a MOVE ON.
> 
> (do yall remember THAT chapter where Moon got a whole Empire against her BUT before that she got a fancy makeover and Olivia told her she rocks red? Yall would have never expected that to come back ever again :))))
> 
> So we have:
> 
> \- Hau loves Lillie  
> \- Gladion is weak for Moon in red because of sexual reasons we can't unpack yet because He's Not Ready For It  
> \- Moon is a dumbass  
> \- Ilima is acting weird  
> \- Yes Ilima will come back later and it's gonna be LOTS OF FUN (just like the whole of this fucking arc)  
> \- Lillie is adorable
> 
> I LOVE MY KIDS SO MUCH AND NEXT CHAPTER IS GONNA BE A LITTLE EMOTIONAL BECAUSE WE HAVE ONE LAST ARC TO CLOSE KIDS
> 
> we're visiting Lusamine 
> 
> dundunDUNNNNNNNNNN


	3. Memoriam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion and Lillie meet Lusamine.

The Solaris Monastery is close, but also very far. It's a place Gladion has long associated with tranquility and peace, but also a certain type of subdued sadness that he truly doesn't want to experience ever again.

During the time he had been there, it had been a process of rinse and repeat of working, crying, and then a moment of peace to lift himself one step up, one step closer to happiness. In a way, he's certain things would have ended much differently if Moon hadn't come back during the time she did. After all, she's in the epicenter of any change in his life; he'd be looking out for the spin in the compass, to see the winds of fate change accordingly.

Moon, however, when stepping into the monastery, doesn't change. If anything, she seems composed, unlike him who is a mess of nerves and trembling hands. This place contains memories of _memories_ he doesn't wish to remember, and the body of a woman who has recently woken up. She's been dormant for months now, suspended in a limbo that could have very well brought her back to the shore of sanity; or, for worse, she could have gone back to basics.

Lillie tells him that 'Mother should be peaceful now', but he doesn't understand where her optimism comes from. Sure, Lillie is a much more positive person, whereas he's more of a brooding type, constantly looking out for The Bad Thing to happen.

It's a very important part of his life. Bad Things always happen. He really doesn't want to experience any of those ever again. Losing Moon had been one of them, a reminder of what life can be like when you entrust your heart to people who are vulnerable under the scope of cruelty and sadness.

Moon is always asking for it; for the trouble, for the thrill. Hau never asks, he simply receives and struggles through it; Lillie swallows it and waits patiently; Gladion fights against it. He sometimes crumbles. He sometimes doesn't.

And all he asks for now is for that peace to come to him.

Hala greets them with open arms and a wide smile, managing to grab the four warriors at the same time and hug all of them in one smooth sweep. "Ohoho! Look who's back from kicking the bad men to the Dark Realm and beyond! I haven't seen any of you since Lady Lillie's coronation!"

Lillie coughs. "Mister Hala… you might be overdoing it a little–!"

"Nonsense!" he squeezes harder. "I'm so happy to see you are alright! We have been holding the fort over here as best as we've been able! Sorry about not checking on you sooner."

The monk releases them, and Moon comes staggering back until Gladion grabs her by the shoulders, stopping her fall. Hau rubs the back of his neck. "Sorry for dropping by unannounced and all that. I bet you're all super busy here."

"Not at all! If anything, I'm happy to see you, as always! I bet you must be tired, correct?" Hala sighs, rubbing his chin. "If the Empress is here with her trusty convoy of warriors, it must be something important, right?"

Moon rolls her left shoulder. It releases a crack. "We might not be so trusty if you break our bones. I might have to sue you for breaking an abiding citizen's bones, Mister."

"You barely classify as abiding, much less a _citizen_."

Moon and Gladion exchange a short glance, eyes narrowed.

Hala laughs. "Ah, it's good to see you around again, Moon. Never thought I'd see you again in the flesh!" His hand lands on Hau's head, ruffling the hair. "You too, kid! You could make an old man happy and drop by more often!"

"Sorry, we've been all over the place lately." Hau's arms drop down, and his body sags forward. "There are so many people we gotta catch up with, dudes…"

"The perks of being an Empress and a figure of state, I suppose. But I'm sure you're not here to catch up with an old man like me, right? Something must be up." Hala sighs. "Young kids like you should be running around with the wind, not taking care of an Empire."

"Um, actually," says Lillie timidly, offering him a smile. "I heard Mother woke up a little ago. I believe it was on… Saturday, right? I received a letter from one of your guards a few days ago."

Hala's expression evens out altogether, like gravity putting the pieces on their places. Lips a thin line and arms folded, he stares at Lillie through thin eyes. "I see. I never thought you would be here for such again– or not so soon, at least."

"We… have a lot of free time in our hands now that Wicke has basically kicked us out of the palace," grumbles Gladion. His voice becomes clear with a sigh. "We would like to see her before parting. It's not something we're very enthusiastic about–"

" _Brother_!"

"–but we have to do it at some point. The sooner we get it done, the better."

Hala considers their words. If Gladion pays enough attention, he can hear a constant hum coming from his chest as he thinks, thinks, thinks and thinks about it. His ears pick the frequency up, but his brain doesn't.

"I suppose that's fair. Lusamine did wake up as you said, but we have been leaving her alone for now, other than the obvious like bringing her food and water," explains Hala, turning heel towards the main facilities of the monastery. The four follow in tow. "She's been rather silent thus far. It seems like she barely remembers anything about… well, you know what. Memories might come to her, but none have thus far."

Gladion doesn't know how to feel about that, but he chooses to be careful. "Absolutely nothing?"

"She remembers vague details. Only tidbits here and there, but nothing more than that," explains Hala. He turns to Lillie. "She… has asked to see you a few times now. I don't think she knows you're the Empress now, as obvious as it might seem to us."

Lillie's frame bounces up in response with a timid gasp. Her expression becomes thoughtful, nearly conflicted, biting her lip while looking to the fields lying to their left. They have long crossed the bridge over the cliffs to access the main, secret area of the Solaris Monastery, but it still feels hauntingly empty. The silence makes Hala's words much more serious than what they should be. After all, this is just a visit.

"So… she doesn't know I'm the Empress now?" asks Lillie.

Hala shakes his head. "We have preferred not to tell her about anything regarding the Aedus Empire. She's in a pretty… frail state, but she will recover. She hasn't mentioned anything about coming back to power, so it's safe to assume her working days are over."

So Lusamine won't be the Empress anymore. That's a twist he had long anticipated, but it's still interesting nonetheless. It's hard to imagine that somebody who used to be that powerful would be dragged back to Earth after nearly reaching the skies and that after decades of sitting on the throne, she'd end up in a bed in a questionable position of weakness and confusion. Gladion, as hard as it might be to love that woman, isn't sure if he wants to see her that way.

He would prefer to hold the image of her on a throne fast, to keep her dignified like that.

But she might not have earned that respect yet. That's one thing he will find out today.

Hala guides them to a small cottage made of light wood and stone. It's close to the cliffside, where the waves crash at the bottom and the frill, thin mist with the color of amber floats upwards. Seagulls coo in the distance. Gladion isn't sure what time it is; this place is timeless. Lusamine could very well be asleep.

Guiding them towards the entrance with his arm, Hala debunks this. "She woke up a few hours ago. She must be reading now. I'll go in and ask her if it'd be okay for you two to come in. I'm sure she'll be happy to get visitors."

Hala disappears behind the door and Gladion instantly begins to sweat. Familiar steps come from behind; a hand covers his own, warm and soft. Lillie. "It will be fine. I can come in first if you want. I haven't talked to her either, but it will be easier for me."

Gladion gulps. "Are you sure?"

Lillie tries to smile it off and act brave, but the act breaks with a sigh. "I am. I'm nervous too. I'm afraid of my presence triggering any memories within her, but… I'm sure it will be fine. Things have changed. I can't cower behind people's backs anymore."

A hand clasps itself over his shoulder– two hands, one of them squeezing in reassurance. That's Moon. The other is Hau's. A grin from the sorcerer. "Dude, you're gonna be fine. If she doesn't know who you are, then I guess you can start over and all that," says Hau gently. "I know what amnesia does to your bonds with people. It will take some time, but…"

Hau's eyes turn to the cottage where Hala has walked into, and then looks at Gladion with an expression full of meaning; a curt nod is all it takes for Gladion to convey his understanding.

Moon gives his shoulder a little squeeze. Gladion realizes she's hugging Lillie from the side, an arm curled around her shoulders. "You two will manage. It's not like she's gonna bite your head off. She's human like the two of you. It will for sure go better than whatever you're picturing."

Gladion is sure she's talking to the both of us, but she's only looking at him. He squints at her. "I'm not _that_ negative."

"I didn't even say a word about that! But you kinda are," Moon snickers, but it's a very molten noise. Gladion appreciates it. "It's gonna be fine. We'll be waiting outside. And after this is done, we can move on and focus on the fun stuff and not the _bad_ stuff, got it?"

Lillie nods, smiling. Moon always manages to make her smile– Hau, too, but their bond is a little different than that of Moon and Lillie. "Got it."

"Good." Moon lets go of both of them and gives them a gentle push towards the cottage. "Now get in there and… uh, I was gonna say _kick ass_ but maybe don't. Lusamine might not appreciate that."

Hau and Moon wave at them and retreat to the other facilities of the monastery with brisk steps. They seem to understand the delicacy of this moment– and Gladion is, again, very grateful about that.

Lillie gives him a delicate, kind look. "You have very good friends."

He reflects her smile, almost humorous. "Yeah, and _you_ do too. They're your friends as much as they are mine."

She blinks several times. It's like the flutter of a butterfly's wings, shocked and tamed, but still ridiculously cute to look at. Lillie nods, gratitude in her smile, and the door opens again– an invitation for them to come in.

Lillie goes in first, and Gladion trails close behind but decides to stay in the orange shadows of the day. The house is all bookshelves, potted plants and rolled-up rugs in a corner. It's remarkably similar to his house back in Ludwig Town, but it also _isn't_ ; there is a whimsical tone about it that tastes like sunlight and moving on, whereas that house back in the wheat fields had been about broken dreams and chasing ambitions.

The light chases the shadows away as curtains are drawn open. More sunlight streams in from the window at the left of the house. There is a bed there, soft linen and violet blankets draped over a single woman of pale hands and frail complexion.

Lusamine of Aedus, the last Empress, once prestigious and powerful, sits on a bed that looks too big to be hers, but the way she clutches at a pillow and curls slightly tells another story. She doesn't look afraid, but meticulous.

"You are… Lillie, right?" Voice hoarse with disuse, it fills the room with its tumbles and falls. "My eyes are not working as well as they used to."

Lillie, ever so patient and kind, steps closer. Gladion detects a certain guard in the way she doesn't smile. "It's me, Mother. It's… been a while since we last saw each other."

Lusamine blinks, then nods her head lightly. "It is fine. I did not expect to get any visits today. Not… from you, of all people, either."

Lillie turns silent at this. It's very intriguing to see Lusamine hold herself straight with dignity when she can barely breathe properly. Her body is ragged and visibly weakened, but no Empress would ever let herself be seen as vulnerable. It's the only conclusion he can reach. He guesses that's the impression a throne-seated individual has to give.

Faba would always say that no professional should let anybody see their weaknesses. In a way, he's right; Gladion, though, wishes he could see Lusamine give in a little so she would look human. So she would look like what she's supposed to be and not what she chased after in the past: the impossible dream of immortality and power.

"I'm sorry I cannot talk very much. I am not feeling very good today, but I will be soon." In the shadows, Gladion's eyes widen. "I wish they would let me walk outside at least. It truly looks like a wonderful day."

Lillie chuckles without humor. "The weather is always nice here, Mother."

"Ah, yes it is." Lusamine sheds the ghost of a smile. "It truly is."

A gentle pause, nearly comfortable, floats in the air. Lusamine's eyes are turned to the window, eyes glimmering in their dullness with some sparkles. She looks peaceful, calm, soft. Nothing like the woman she's still making herself to be. Nothing like the woman she's pretending to still be.

"Tell me," Lusamine whispers, raspy, "why are you here? I never thought I would see anybody again after all that has happened."

The eyes of the now Empress widen, staring at the woman who _used_ to be on the throne. "Huh? You… remember?"

A chuckle escapes her, ironic and tired. "They assume I cannot put the pieces together, but I remember enough to know what I did to my own daughter. No mother would ever forget about something like that. I am not entirely sure if what I have seen is true, but… the little things I have seen are terrifying, Lillie."

Her name sounds soft in her lips, a sigh of exhaustion. Gladion thinks she might fall asleep, but she doesn't, and continues looking at Lillie with this little spark in her eyes that's barely there, but it exists and that might be enough. It certainly is enough for Lillie, who sits down on the edge of the bed with a growing smile on her lips.

She reaches to grab her hand. Gladion leans against the wall, smiling.

"We have a lot to talk about, but… you should rest first. And when your head is clearer… we can talk about all of this, okay? And we will figure the rest out from then on," says Lillie, gentle enough to not stir any animosity in Lusamine. "I'm not saying I can… forgive you yet. It's not as easy as that. Maybe when you remember all that happened we can also work on all of this, all right?"

Much to his surprise, Lusamine nods in agreement. She doesn't seem compromised or defeat. She looks happy. Relieved, almost. "I would like that."

Something creeps up Gladion's throat and he lets out a very, very small cough; it's enough to alert Lusamine and Lillie of his presence, which makes him yelp and take a mild step back.

Lillie's expression brightens a little. She brushes a tender thumb across Lusamine's hand whilst beckoning him to come over, which he obliges to.

When he steps into the light, Lusamine lets out a very small gasp, eyes becoming round and big. "Mother… do you remember him?" Seeing she's not answering yet, she decides to help her. "He is Gladion. We met him a short while after Moon came by."

"Moon?" Lusamine asks. "I… cannot seem to recall that name." She points a small finger at him. It's not accusing. It looks like guidance, a point of reference, something to hold onto as she speaks. "Him though… yes, Gladion. I do remember you." A genuine small smile appears on her visage. "For some reason, it is a very familiar name, somehow… I am unsure why."

Lillie fidgets with the hem of her shirt, eyes darting from Gladion to Lusamine in swift motions. Gladion is sure she's about to drop the bomb but she doesn't know why, and Gladion would save her out of this one if he knew a better way to phrase all of this. When it comes to revealing siblinghood, Wicke had made it look _so_ easy back in Zeffarei. It's very easy to say, but it will be very hard to process for a woman as weakened as Lusamine.

So she does the unthinkable: she throws herself into the pool headfirst.

"Mother… I doubt you remember him because a lot of time has passed and… many things have happened, so this will sound very hard to believe." Lusamine tilts her head, confused. "But… Gladion is my brother. He is your son."

Many things occur all at once. Lusamine takes a few seconds to blink and probably pass Lillie's words through the crumbling filter that is her mind, and then her eyes widen several times their size. A stutter blows in her throat, breathy and confused, dragging her eyebrows down to disbelief.

"You… that cannot be!" She grabs her chest, fingers reaching for something that is no longer there. "That day, when Mohn left the castle, he… he never came back! I sent my soldiers looking for him but he… he never came back. And he took my son and my daughter away." Lusamine's argument fades, and she reaches to grab her forehead. "They told me he died. They told me I could…"

Lillie scoots closer to her. "Go on?"

"It's coming back to me slowly." Lusamine sighs. A small smile curls her lips. "When I first saw you I… I was admittedly curious about your appearance, but everyone around me had assured me that both my husband and son had to be dead. When I asked Cyrus he… he told me it simply could _not_ be you." Whether that would have been good back then or not is still hanging in the air. "The more often those people visited, the more I began to forget, the better I felt about the loss, but… I never forgot there was a gap left beside Lillie."

The former Empress looks out the window. There is a silver of darkness in her eyes that the sun is trying to keep at bay, sparkling in the sunlight.

"And then… I remember very little. Just little flashes and little images." Her eyes are withdrawn, deep within a memory. "I… always thought they had died. I never understood why he would leave me when our family was so happy."

"He took Gladion away, yes, but that's because– because..." Gladion gives her one single look. It's not the time to talk about that yet: about the many reasons that could have driven Mohn away. About the reasons that had led her to her demise. "He took Gladion away and saved him, Mother. We don't know where Father could be, but… Gladion ended in a small town in the Kandrus Empire. And he came to Zeffarei to meet us."

Lusamine turns her head to Gladion. "You… did? From so far away? For us?"

Gladion turns his head away from them, feeling his cheeks heat up at the sheer wonder and awe in her voice, so latent and obvious he's taken aback greatly by the rawness of it all. Why is she so surprised by this? He's the one who should be surprised he even got to meet them in the end.

"I… yeah, of course I did," Gladion admits through gritted teeth. "I grew up with a doctor that wasn't my dad, and he hasn't even been a good parental figure either. I saw all kids with their dad and mom and then I saw myself with that man. Something was wrong." Gladion sighs, crossing his arms over his chest. "I needed to know what was out there. I needed to find my own family, wherever it was. I didn't want to stay in the same place for my whole life."

Lillie's expression of astonishment can be easily explained by the fact that she's never heard such a fleshed out version of the story, and the air around them, so sensitive and almost _candid_ doesn't help either. Lusamine's face is a whole different story, so moved by this little tale she ends up smiling again.

Gladion would have never expected a woman as previously powerful as Lusamine to have the ability to smile.

But she does. And it feels like a final piece has clicked into place.

Lusamine gently pats the place by Lillie on the bed. "Come sit down and tell me a little about that town. I would love to hear more about it now and… someday, if you wish to visit me again." Her eyes turn vaguely forlorn. "I wish I had never let those men touch me. I never thought… I thought you were…"

Dead. No longer alive. He knows that feeling of loss very well.

Gladion submits to the gentle order gracefully and sits down by Lillie.

"I'm alive. It has taken a while but… yeah, I'm alive." Gladion smiles small and plain, but it's a smile all the same. "I'm sorry it took me so long."

Lillie's cheeks fill with emotion, puffed by a genuine, happy smile. She pats his arm softly. "Don't apologize, silly. What matters is that you are here now."

Her eyes dart to Lusamine, who nods in agreement, humming raspy and low. Then, her evergreen eyes, golden around the edges like the sun, turn to him.

And then, she smiles.

"Thinking about it… you truly remind me of Mohn. He would have been so proud." Lusamine's eyes close in bliss. "You… have grown so much, Gladion."

* * *

Gladion decides to walk around after the meeting is over. Well, it truly isn't over, as he's left Lillie to talk with Lusamine while he goes out for a little walk. The Solaris Monastery is all flowers in full bloom, golden rays and the rush of the ocean under his feet. The bridge he has to cross is treacherous and bouncy, but he chalks it up to the fact that he's alone now and things are always a little bigger and a little riskier when he's alone.

Hau is somewhere catching up with Hala, as he had been informed. Those two have lots to talk about, and a talk about sword lessons has been thrown in the air here and there, or so he's heard. With Lillie and Hau busy, the only sane form of entertainment is himself because Moon doesn't fall into the consensus of safety.

But as pulled by fate as he is, he still finds her. She's standing in the bandstand that floats in midair after the bridge, where the prayer bells hang. She's but a shadow against the deep yellow of the sunset, the sun sinking in the horizon in a haze of hot white and twinkles on the faraway sea. Everything over the ocean is a mist of wisps and seafoam, but her shape stands out perfectly.

Maybe his eyes are trained to distinguish her in a crowd or a storm, much like an animal learns to find danger in a forest.

"Ah, there you are."

Moon turns around when he arrives. Hands folded behind her and expression calm, he reminds himself over and over that this version of her exists. A question lingers in his words, one he doesn't need to ask, one she doesn't need to hear.

"Yep. Here I am." His silent question still rings and hangs unanswered. Moon curls a strand of her hair around her finger. "I… was sightseeing. It's a very pretty place to be in, with the sea and all that. It's super pretty from high up here." Gladion is about to deliver a reply, but she cuts in. "How did the talk go?"

"Surprisingly well," he answers. "How is yours going?"

"Eh? Are you high from all the weeds around there?"

"Not at all, but something is in your mind and you're… _here_ , out of all places." Gladion delivers a quirked eyebrow. "Are you here to pray?"

" _Please_. I'm a woman with all my deeds in check. I got nobody to ask fortune for."

"Then? Are you truly here just for sightseeing?"

Moon blinks at that question. Gladion isn't quite sure when he became so dextrous in the art of reading her; reading her eyes, reading her gestures. It's something he does like breathing, which can pose difficulties when he's standing in a place as delicate as this and it truly isn't his business to ask about her affairs.

However, both of them know what this place is for. It's destined to say goodbye to the departed. And one of them has departed once.

Moon sighs. "I… Hau took me here." A gulp. She looks out to the ocean before her, before him. "I don't know why I stayed but… here I am. Thinking about stuff."

"Stuff?"

She drums her fingers against the bandstand's railing, leaning back a little. "Hau told me you two came here to pray for me."

Well, fuck. That's an unexpected topic he has no answers for– and she senses this, hurriedly speaking again.

"It's fine! I'm not _that_ bothered about it anymore. It's all in the past and we're supposed to be having fun and all that, so–!"

Gladion sighs. Fondly. "Moon."

The tone says it all. Stern but irritated but soft but kind and many things more between the layers of his voice. He sees the reaction flicker through her, the small crack that never fails to lower the mask off her face. A call to stop the charade. As though he's opening his arms for her to come clean.

And she does.

Sighing, she crosses her arms. "It's just kinda shitty you two just… stayed here while I was elsewhere complaining on a bed because of a few scratches. It sucks that I for _once_ wasn't quick enough to tell you two I was fine 'cause stuff kept coming up. I didn't even think you two were mourning me– literally _nobody_ told me. And I don't like that." She bites her lip. For once, she's looking at anything but him. She's cowering. Hiding behind a wall. "I don't wanna feel that disconnected. I don't wanna worry all of you to the point of getting Hau all worked up about it. I promised myself I'd do just _that_ but I also told myself I'd do _anything_ to come back to Zeffarei in one piece and–"

"Moon, you're rambling."

He doesn't interrupt her to mock her, but to let her know she can calm down. She doesn't sound nervous per se but he detects a sharp edge of fidgeting that he doesn't like to see.

"I know. Sorry. It's ridiculous, but…" Moon adamantly flings her arms at the bells, pointing at them with her hands. "I don't want that to happen again. I shouldn't be thinking about it, but–"

Firm hands grab her forearms. It shuts her up immediately.

" _Arceus,_ of course it's fine for you to talk about it, Moon," he tells her, sighing. "You're the one who told me communication was necessary for long-lasting cooperation, right?"

She chuckles. "I told you that before raiding a pirate base. It's not the same."

"It _is_ , stop being so argumentative." Moon laughs breathily at that, taking in a deep breath afterward. "There. Listen, it's going to sound very hypocritical of me to say this but talking about it is good for you. Has it been bugging you all this time, or…?"

"No, no. It's just– it came up now. Hau doesn't have the best of ways with words and he made me feel… I don't know? He made me feel weird and emotional when he mentioned you two prayed for me here." Moon sighs again. "I thought I was having a heart attack but Hau informed me it was just, y'know, guilt."

By the looks of it, she already knows she shouldn't feel like this. None of what happened is her fault, after all. "You simply got emotional. It's fine."

"So this is normal?"

"Yeah."

Moon's hand hovers over her chest. "My heart feels… kinda tight." Gladion gives her a very odd look, more confused than judging of her lack of expertise. "I know it's… easy for all of you to _know_ about these things right away but– uh, it's a little harder for me. I don't like feeling things I can't _see_. It's annoying."

Gladion observes her in silence. Naturally, Moon is made more for the tangible and the beatable rather than the sensitive and untouchable parts in her heart. She's traveled on her own for most of her life, living like a hermit, so it's only natural she's feeling this way. Gladion is used to running away from these topics as well, much more than tackling them head-on.

"But," Moon says softly, expression gentler, "you and Hau have made it better. And more bearable. Hau might be one hell of a sappy guy but he's gotten me to think about–" she pats the surface over her heart, sighing gravely. A nod of conviction. "It's gotten easier to deal with it. And it'll get easier. No need to throw a fit about it."

"Never thought I would hear _you_ of all people say something as cute as that. You're losing killer points, Moon."

Gladion says this good-naturedly, knowing the little tease will cheer her up; it does, lifting her expression into a wobbly smile and a sigh. She rolls her shoulders for the umpteenth time today, as if throwing one last weight off her shoulders.

Moon springs back into her usual disposition quickly, chin high and smile in check. "Right! I should go check on Lillie just in case she needs some backup. We're all super emotional today and she's gonna need good ol' me to be the best bodyguard ever."

She takes one step away. Two steps, just enough to exit the bandstand. He realizes that she's right, that today is a very emotional day, and that this place– _this one_ in particular, makes the sight of her leaving very wrong.

"Hold on."

Moon turns around, questioning his actions with arched eyebrows. He stands right before her, towering over her with an oddly somber expression that melts into a sigh as he takes her into his arms and curls them around her waist and shoulders, pushing her into his chest.

As usual, she stiffens the barest bit under his hands– but she relaxes just as easy, a playful giggle vibrating on his chest. "You are getting too used to hugging me, Gladbag. I'm gonna start charging you for these."

"You're too far gone if you think I would pay for this," he says, then hugs her close. "Just– give me a second. Stop yipping for just one second."

Moon complies and falls silent. Her hands come to his back, cupping his shoulder blades like wings in flight. She feels warm under his fingers, mellow to the eye, silent to the ear and grassy under his nose, a verdant forest hidden in her hair. He nestles his nose there, sighing, taking a deep breath.

He wills himself to look at the bells, and then digs his fingers into her back, bending over a little.

"Everything is fine now," he informs her. She nods. "Things are working out so well I… I can't believe it. Mother is fine– recovering, but fine. Lillie is fine, you and Hau are fine. It's so weird to think that luck is finally on my side."

"I already told you once, Gladion– if you're not gonna aim for the top, then what's the point?"

It's an oddly fateful thing for her to say. That phrase had been stuck within him during his healing and mourning process because it had been that sole intent which almost took her away; and while he had never intended to aim for something that big ever in his life, all his big feats had been consequences of his goals. And all these little consequences had been caused, in one way or another, by Moon.

He guesses that's what Moon is good at. She makes him a little better, a little bigger. Lillie makes him a little softer, Hau makes him a little more human, but Moon makes him taller. She makes him _stronger_.

That philosophy of hers might have almost taken her six feet under– but, all things considered, she might have had a point all along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't LOOK AT ME THEY'RE HUGGING THEY'VE COME SO FAR THEY'RE GETTING AFFECTIONATE AND MY HEART CAN'T TAKE THIS SHIT
> 
> so yes this is the finalization of the 'Gladion Is Looking For His Family' arc which means 100% of what's coming is plotless innocent fluff other than a few little shenanigans, nothing important. We're basically done with being heavy and emotional unless it's related to love folks FINALLY
> 
> and speaking of love do you see that development. Gladimoon hugging again. relying on each other. trusting each other. opening up. my uwus. oh my god my uwus are spilling
> 
> I don't really have much to quote from this chapter as I usually do, I'll just say that 1. I FUCKING LOVE SOLARIS MONASTERY AND ITS IMAGERY SO SO SO MUCH UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH ETERNAL SUNSET 2. We're half-redeeming Lusamine but we won't see her again unless she's mentioned, lower your blades folks and 3. ugHHHH GLADIMOOOOOOOOOOOON
> 
> "No, no. It's just– it came up now. Hau doesn't have the best of ways with words and he made me feel… I don't know? He made me feel weird and emotional when he mentioned you two prayed for me here." Moon sighs again. "I thought I was having a heart attack but Hau informed me it was just, y'know, guilt." - Do you guys remember when Moon was so fucking out of her head she left Gladion and Hau to die in the Kandrus Empire. Who would've thought dudes. Who would've thought.
> 
> "It's just kinda shitty you two just… stayed here while I was elsewhere complaining on a bed because of a few scratches. It sucks that I for once wasn't quick enough to tell you two I was fine 'cause stuff kept coming up. I didn't even think you two were mourning me– literally nobody told me. And I don't like that." She bites her lip. For once, she's looking at anything but him. She's cowering. Hiding behind a wall. - ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh MOOOON
> 
> "He guesses that's what Moon is good at. She makes him a little better, a little bigger. Lillie makes him a little softer, Hau makes him a little more human, but Moon makes him taller. She makes him stronger. / That philosophy of hers might have almost taken her six feet under– but, all things considered, she might have had a point all along." - hi Gladion is, again, pining. More news at 9pm
> 
> next chapter we're revisiting a very pretty place and meeting with someone we haven't seen in forever
> 
> we're going back to the beginning: GEMSTONE VILLAGE


	4. Winter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group enjoys the pleasantries of winter in Gemstone Village, and Gladion meets someone he never thought he'd see again.

"There's so much snow everywhere! I never knew it would snow like this in this Dominion!"

Hau pops out of the hotel right after Lillie, followed by Moon and Gladion. He grins as he glances around, cheering. "Dude, that's awesome! They've set up the markets already too! We gotta go there before they run out of malasadas!"

Gladion observes them run down the hill and rush to Gemstone Village's main street. Hau chases after Lillie while Moon observes the town from the altitude of the hill, right by his side. She rubs her hands together. Everyone is wearing thick jackets and scarves, running around the streets and leaving imprints of snow on the ground.

Moon is the complete opposite of that, simply wearing a thin traveling cloak and a shirt under her usual one.

"It's kinda chilly today!" she tells Gladion, puffs of white air coming through her lips. Gladion, wearing a thick scarf and a jacket, moves his eyes to her, bleary. "You three are wearing a whole catalog of clothes from a snowman's boutique. I'm gonna end up doing a very pretty snowman with your clothes."

"You are _insane_ ," says Gladion, speaking into his scarf. "It's snowing outside and you're not wearing anything to protect yourself."

"Snow is water. Very cold water." Moon holds up her bare hands. She's making him feel cold just by not using gloves. "I'm thanking mother nature for this snow and letting her moisturize my skin. It's all a matter of standards of beauty."

"Since when have you cared about any of that?"

"Since _never_ until this exact instant," grins Moon, jogging idly. Her hair is sprinkled with snowflakes, and her cheeks are oddly blistered, probably from the cold. He can see a little bit of pinkness blossoming on the tip of her nose. "What about we race to the marketplace? We gotta do some exercise before breakfast!"

Gladion looks ahead of them. Lillie is listening to Hau talking while the latter makes signs towards the hill and then the market. He might want them to go up the hill and roll down like they once did. "If your concept of a race is whatever Hau is telling my sister, I will pass."

"Don't be like that! Let's race, it's not gonna kill you!" Moon exclaims.

She digs her hand into Gladion's pocket to fetch his wrist, tugging at it so he follows her down the hill, laughing. Gladion keeps a hand on his little beanie as he lets her take him along, skidding and rushing down the hill of the hotel.

Gemstone Village is spectacular when snow-capped like this. The usual greens, pinks, and pastels have turned dimmer and softer, mostly blues and whites in a canvas of gray and darkened green. The lake has not frozen up yet, as it is early winter, but people are wearing gloves and winter-styled equipment like the date is such. The trees dotting the cliffs above the town are covered in snow, with ice stalactites hanging from the roots and the walls to the caves. A few flowers are timidly showing up through the layers of snow, most of them wet with dew and snow.

The temperature is cold for a day like this, and the placid snow adds a bite of chill to it all. The Aedus Empire is closer to the mountain ranges, and it should be snowing there now if Gladion's calculations are correct. Snow in the Kandrus Dominion is rare, but whenever it comes, it comes _fiercely_. Gemstone Village makes it look like a fairy-tale of ice and snowmen, but a blizzard will for sure follow today.

If it's snowing here, it means that it will be snowing in most of the western part of the Dominion, maybe even in Altaria Bay. Gladion hasn't seen it snow like this in years. Normally Faba wouldn't let him out of the house when it snowed, claiming that ' _you could get pneumonia or some unsightly disease that would require money and time to cure, and you know how bad that would be_.'

His boot catches with a stone on the way. He stumbles and rolls down the hill with Moon, who has let go of him yet has been pulled down as well.

When his fall ends and he finally stops spinning, he's covered in snow everywhere and he's facing the blue-ish sky, all of it dotted with snowflakes and the sudden shadow of a grinning rascal.

"You took a bit of a fall there, Gladbag," she says, snickering.

"That's what I get for following your ideas," he sighs, wiping some snow off his cheeks. "I swear to Arce– _hmph_!"

Something cold and _grainy_ but also _soft_ is plastered on his face like a mask, with five slender fingers pressing on the surface for maximum pain, laughing as he squirms. Moon releases her grip on the snow, yet he's quick enough to grab her wrist as he wipes the snow off his cheeks, his eyes, and his forehead– some caught on his fringe as well.

Moon laughs even harder when she sees the pissed off expression that is undoubtedly freezing his visage. "Oh, Arceus, you look like a snowb– _hey_!"

Gladion pushes her to the ground and hears her yelp as her back meets the oh so cold snow, laughter still rippling through her chest. He holds a fistful of snow up, squinting at her. The sound of his sword clicking with his belt is fateful, almost. "You have three seconds to say sorry, Moon."

She reaches behind and under her, evidently looking for her daggers. All she can do is hold up her free fist in a subtle challenge. " _You_ have three seconds to say you're sorry! You're being such a rude swine I can't–"

"You two!" A voice, dotted with warmth and mischief comes from the distance. Both him and her look at the main street in search of its owner, who happens to be a grinning Hau. "You're gonna miss out on the goodies if you start brawlin' right now!"

Lillie waves high, smiling as well. "There are lots of cute necklaces around here! You need to look at these!"

Moon takes advantage of his distraction to shove her knee on his abdomen and push him off from her, sending him a few feet to the side and back to take a dip of snow. Gladion growls as she smirks, holding up her knuckles for him to see the frost-bitten skin.

"Told you so!" She grins. It crinkles her eyes. "Next time you think about cornering me, you'll remember about me and my mighty fists of doom!"

"All that's mighty about you is your stupidity."

A snowball hits him square in the face. He lets the topic move on. They will solve this like mature but also very competitive warriors later.

The stands that form the market are all capped by the white flakes and thin patches of ice on the wooden roofs. There are a variety of items being sold along the stream of shops on the streets, but there is little to no food to be seen. Hau will for sure be saddened to hear about this– but as he suddenly hears from the row of shops behind this one, he's found something 'nice and spicy' to munch on before breakfast.

As he walks by distractedly, keeping an eye on both Moon and his sister as they turn around the corner in the direction of the lake, he bumps with the corner of a book perched on the stand of the shop. He only notices it because the end is sharp and catches with his jacket.

His eyes look on at the variety of books in front of him. It's a rather large stand, and a few other customers are looking over the variety of volumes stacked and compiled in boxes and full of bookmarks and sticky notes. Some of them are put together under the category of 'research', and it takes him very little to find a few works that call his attention. _The Gold for The Penny_ and _Why Gengar The Phantom Destroyed An Army_ delight him, and he buys both of them without batting an eyelash.

As he's about to leave, however, happily marching with a pair of books under his arm, he notices a flashy volume under the history section: _History and Traditions All Across The World: The Karee Empire_.

It's covered in a thin sheet of dust that he easily blows away. It's a white leather book with white ink at the front and gray colors for the drawing. There is a small owl-like figure drawn with very thin lines on the leather. The edges are rimmed by golden paint. It seems expensive.

His eyes sneak a peek behind the vendor. Moon and Lillie stand in front of a shop right behind this one, observing a few gemstones on the wooden surface while chatting. Gladion is sure Moon knows plenty about the history of the Karee Empire – likely more than anyone, considering she's the last survivor of that tragedy _which is incredibly sobering to think about too_ – but she had left the Empire when she was very young. She probably knows a lot, but she probably doesn't know _enough_ to satiate his political needs to study.

A little Wicke-shaped spirit comes up in his head, perched on his shoulder: ' _you shouldn't be thinking about studying! You should be having fun!'_

It's not like he's going to dedicate the whole trip to studying. It's all for the sake of his possible future career as an Emperor which Wicke has told him to stop thinking about–

' _Yes, stop thinking about that now, Young Master! No studying for you– you have been working yourself to exhaustion for months!_ '

He's still curious and, in hindsight, Wicke has no authority over him and his decisions, so he buys the book – for an absurdly low price – and leaves the shop feeling even more content than before.

Just as he's keeping all the books in his big backpack, rummaging through his changes of clothes and his traveling cloak, he stumbles with Moon on his way, staring off into the distance. He's about to ask what has gotten her so static, why she's standing in his way like that when she holds up a hand.

Then, she starts backhanding his chest very, very aggressively and dragging him a few feet back by the elbow. "What's gotten into you today?"

"Sh!" Moon insists, continuously hitting his chest and pointing forward with a pitched noise. It's more of a squeal. "Look at _that_!"

 _That_ turns out to be Lillie, and also Hau, but not as separate entities because they are holding hands. They are holding hands. Gladion can almost see their entwined fingers through the snowflakes and Moon's admittedly irritating jumping and fidgeting.

"Gladion, they are _holding_ hands!"

She looks as though she's being severely tickled.

"I know," he chuckles. "I can see that."

With pursed lips, Moon regards the couple with sparkly eyes. She's holding herself back from going over there and making them kiss and he knows it. He also knows she would never force her desires for their happiness on them, either, so whatever is in her mind is going to be either chaotic or surprisingly calm.

"Do you think," Moon pauses, "that they have already kissed?"

"Considering he told me about his feelings for her last week, I doubt so."

"But they…" Moon's eyes dodge his for some ungodly reason. "Uh, they have held hands before."

Gladion's eyes widen. Moon gives him an apologetic smile. " _What_?"

"I thought you were fine with giving Hau your blessings to do all those sorts of romantic and sappy things!"

"You never told me about any of this!" Gladion hisses, albeit not angrily. He's merely frustrated. "When did you plan on telling me they were at _that_ stage?"

Moon's expression, previously candid and excited, sharpens into a knowing smirk. "Uh-huh. So you _are_ interested in all of this!"

Gladion growls. "I _never_ said that."

"Sure, whatever you say," she grins, turning back to the happy soon-to-be couple. "Listen, I'm just super tired of them acting like they don't have feelings for each other. Are you seeing what I'm seeing? They are holding hands! All romance books say that holding hands means there are feelings unless, I don't know, both of them are dumb."

"Where did you read that? In the _Floette and the Pauper_? That's one of the worst love stories known to mankind."

"No, you idiot." Moon steps away from him, rolling her eyes. "I read it in _Ribombee and the Hive_. Ribombee apparently held hands with partners of similar intellect so they would make it back home safely with their honey. They say the Ribombees who love each other the most would make the best honey; the redder the honey, the better it will taste."

Gladion has heard about that. Ribombee honey is one of the most valued brands of honey in the whole world, and the Aedus Dominion happens to elaborate it. The Granary of Dawn Square Market specializes in honey-making, yet they obviously do not have the mythical Ribombees to create it. He's heard dumb stories about how some lines of the brand – which vary in color and consistency – can only be tasted by certain types of people at certain seasons of the year.

There are rumors that Chesto Ribombee Honey only has a taste for kids who have behaved well; Leppa Ribombee Honey is rumored to only appease the wealthy because of its licorice-like aftertaste, while Oran Ribombee Honey is only tasty for the peasants. Rawst Ribombee Honey allegedly only tastes good during the winter, and Aspear Ribombee Honey is only good when it's hot.

True Ribombee Honey, however, the most expensive out of them all, is rumored to only have a taste for couples that are in love, hence why it's usually only bought for special occasions like anniversaries and weddings. It certainly matches the description Moon is giving him; True Ribombee Honey has a particularly deep red color and a very floral taste. Those few who can afford it and have tried it have said it's heavenly-tasting, but Gladion doesn't buy any of those stories.

Moon has moved to his right side, humming as she observes Lillie laugh at something Hau has said. Gladion notes the subtle squeeze of his hand on hers, his thumb rubbing over her palm. It's affectionate and sweet. He wasn't joking when he said he really likes her.

"Do you think that if we feed them that reddish honey they will like it, and I don't know, feel the _love_ in the honey?" Moon gives him a cheeky grin. "They're both very sensitive people. I bet they'd feel the specs of pollen on the honey."

"I think Hau doesn't like honey," Gladion comments. "And we can't afford to buy a jar of that. It's incredibly expensive."

" _Oh_ , you'll afford as many as you want when you become Emperor," she says, wagging her eyebrows and nudging his side with her elbow. He groans, but doesn't shoot down her tease. "You gotta invite me to some of it when you sit your edgy ass on the throne. You could have it for breakfast. It'd be _so_ much better than having that nasty jam!"

Gladion pokes her on the shoulder. It feels like a jab. "You're the nasty one for having _butter_ with it!"

Moon laughs it off and looks forward again– the space where they used to stand is empty; the lovebirds are gone.

Her smile turns into a sigh, walking away from Gladion and to a stand. "Look at that. They're gone to smooch somewhere we can't keep an eye on them. If they end up confessing their undying love for each other, we won't be able to see it."

"And here you are, still proclaiming you think love is boring."

"Oh, _shut it_." Moon waves a hand at him dismissively, her focus on something else entirely. "I gotta check these out. You guys don't wanna go treasure hunting and one's gotta manage with these fakes."

The vendor rubs the back of his neck guiltily. Before her is an arrangement of gems of several types and colors, all of them still deep into their ores of sparkling stones and rocks. Most of them are sharp and pointy to a suspiciously pleasing degree, hence why Moon might be so jarred about them. She's eyeing them expertly, sometimes rubbing her hands and blowing in between her palms, others jogging a little to simply _keep moving_.

Hold on.

"Are you cold?"

Her eyes snap out of attention as she blinks at him instead. "What?"

"You're rubbing your hands like _that_ and you won't stop fidgeting," explains Gladion. "Are you cold?"

She blinks again. It takes her a few seconds to answer. "I– no. Of course not. I'm perfectly fine."

Gladion brushes a nonchalant finger across her vexingly bare forearm, and she tenses up in response. The familiar cold-bitten goosebumps all over her skin are damning evidence of her lies. "You must be getting really thrilled about these stones then, otherwise you look cold."

Moon's right eye twitches, then she pulls her gaze away from his as if looking for a way out of this situation. She doesn't notice this, but she's drumming her fingers against her very cold-bitten forearm, showing under the cloak, thus bringing more focus to that area and not helping her case. Snow is falling around them and her fingertips are a little red, too. Her nose has developed a worrying blush, but he knows better than to think she's embarrassed in any way, shape or form.

Instead of giving him a full answer, she turns around and gives him a good view of her back. "I'm fine. No cold is gonna make me–"

A zipper is closed, and a veil of black wool and _warmth_ comes over her like a blanket. He covers her with the spare traveling cloak he has with him, one of those he's borrowed from Lusamine that might fit him just fine, but she looks ridiculous and small between all the white fur and the coats of wool. Her head sticks out of the fur with furious blinks as he ties the bow to her neck.

He yanks at the ties and almost chokes the life out of her.

Stammering, she gulps. "What– what are you–"

"I'm saving you from pneumonia," he says calmly, finishing the bow with one last tug. "There. You can keep that until we get to the hotel again."

Moon blinks again, but at a ridiculously quick speed. She looks at him, then at the cape. It reaches her knees. It looks much more graceful on him than it does on her, that's for sure. "I don't need it. I can manage the cold much better than any of you three."

"And I believe you." He adjusts the fur around her neck. "But I'm not going to take any chances of you getting sick just because you're too stubborn to bring a thicker jacket or gloves."

"I'm not stubborn. I just like traveling light and I didn't have time to pick my gloves from the seamstress before leaving Zeffarei." Moon looks down at the cloak again. She pinches the edges with her fingers. "This also looks super big. You're too thin to fill this in, you pretentious edgelord."

A vein pops up in his forehead. "Says the one who looks like a cupcake with all this on. Maybe I'm just doing this to ridicule you."

Which of course he isn't, and she knows this as well. The few gestures of genuine care they have displayed – be it the spare and very unusual hugs, be it the blankets in the library, be it her attempts to take him out from the library to eat so 'he doesn't get any smaller' – prove that whatever banter they have going on belies a much stronger bond between them. He knows Moon appreciates the gesture just like he appreciates her covering him with a blanket when he's sleeping.

It's all about the little things. She just likes to turn the seedlings into oak trees.

"This… is nice, I guess. And warm." Moon gives him an earnest look and a nod. "But if I catch some sort of _edgelorditis_ , that's gonna be your fault, Gladbag. You're gonna have to pay for a doctor."

Gladion grabs the fur on the cape and tightens it around her throat, then squishes her cheeks with his free hand. "Can't you just say _thank you_ like a normal person?"

"I refuse to owe you any sort of favor; in short, _no_."

Which, translated to Moon's language and the way she's smirking at him with blaring honesty, it means a _yes_.

But he doesn't take it away from her, and she doesn't take it off from her either. They stride along the shops strung around the lake. The lake is rimmed with blues and pinks from the passing boats, with the hush of the snow falling on the water amid the mild breeze. Most fishermen have long left the small harbors, but the sparkling buckets full of fish remain. Moon and Gladion look for Lillie and Hau around the shore of the lake and find them sitting on one of the harbors. Hau's laughter can be heard from a mile away.

When the chatty pair hears the creaking of steps behind them, they turn their heads to find Gladion and Moon there. Hau trails his eyes from Moon's red hiking boots to the nest of fur around her neck. "Dude, you got some style. Though that's a lil' big for you, ain't it?"

Lillie knows best, though, looking at Gladion instead of her. "I have seen that cape before. Isn't that Mother's?"

His eyes narrow venomously. _Traitor_. "I took it from her in case we got caught up with a bad storm," he says. "We have managed to sleep outdoors with no need for protection, but who knows when we will stumble with a storm." Green eyes meet charcoal. "Especially since a very special someone decided to throw our tents down the river."

Moon seems nonchalant about this. "That was a collaborative effort. Hau threw the other one we had."

"'Cause you kept telling me to!" insists Hau.

That day, Moon had just finished crossing the river when she heard growling behind her, indicating an unwelcome presence following after her. Impulsive as she is – which can't be judged because everyone in this group is impulsive – she had made the executive decision to throw the tent bag she was carrying to the crocodile that was crawling after them. Of course, Moon had never intended to hit the animal, but to scare it away.

"If you hadn't later said that it would be good for us, I wouldn't have been half as irritated as I was," says Lillie, sighing. "But at least the tent bags got stuck in the currents. I suppose we can get them back if we ever need them."

"Of course! They fell super close to here!"

"The Shongshu Watchpoint is _not_ super close," remarks Gladion.

Moon puts her hands on her hips. "Not with that attitude! But we gotta teach Lillie how the true camping experience works. Tents are for cowards."

"And for very responsible people."

She shakes her head dismissively at his comment. "That's trash. What matters is that we give Lillie the true experience and that's how it's gonna stay." Moon ducks a finger under her chin, tilting her head from one side to another. "Hm. Maybe we could go explore some dungeons, yeah? I know you guys said we shouldn't but–"

"We are _not_ going to risk our necks just for some petty treasure."

Hau shakes his head as well. "I mean, I'm down for it–"

"You absolute _traitor_ ," seethes Gladion.

"– but I don't wanna leave Lillie hangin' behind, y'know. I don't know if we should take her to places that dangerous. Knowing you, you're gonna want to get into the good stuff and _good stuff_ means _dangerous_ stuff."

"Actually… I wouldn't mind."

Lillie speaks with a soft and timid smile, but her intentions are clear. Hau and Gladion stare at her, speechless, and Moon grins in her direction. "See? I told you she has the spirit! She might even have more of it than you two do."

"Lillie, Moon is a complete danger to society," says Gladion, whilst very aware that he's covered that dangerous specimen with his very own cloak. "She will get you in danger. I don't mind her shenanigans, but you might."

She spares him a sympathetic, understanding look. "You are right, it might be dangerous, but that's the whole point of this trip, right? I have to experience what's around me to the fullest. Be it dungeons, caves or even the _ocean_ , I have to go there and see things for myself." She balls her hands to fists and puts them over her heart in pure conviction. "I will give this my all! So I have to ask you all to do the same for me."

Hau and Gladion stare at her with wide and round eyes, unsure as to what to answer. Lillie's growth has always been silent but long underway; it's in moments like these when he's reminded that Lillie has changed as much as he has. A trip similar to this – albeit with stakes much higher – did wonders to his life. It's no wonder she's feeling like this at the start; she has a much more bright point of view, he presumes.

Moon grins. "Told you she had it in her. You just don't wanna listen to me."

And with that, the group sets to the tea shop. Gemstone Village has a couple of restaurants they could very well have breakfast in, yet the thought of going back to that cozy little tea shop reminds him of the old days when things were simpler, when he was a beginner at all of this. It's a timeless place that will always be there, that will never change, and that sort of unchanging notion is like a breather when he's moving in a life as quick as his.

It's like a second home, in a way. It's a familiar place. Somewhere he knows. And he likes that.

Taeyong's tea shop lies at the end of the main street under trees, and where once was springtime happiness now there's a certain winter touch that adds elegance to the entrance. The doorstep is covered in snow and frost, but the inside of the building is warm. The scent of tea sneaks past his nostrils like a sweet warm concoction. It could cure the deadliest of diseases.

Little things have changed, he realizes; the paper lamps are a little brighter, and there are more of them. The stools at the bar are of a darker wood now, and ornaments are hanging from a wall he knows used to be bare. Some details have changed, but the core warm and pleasant toe-curling safety of this little den remains untouched.

When Taeyong sees them from her spot behind the bar, she immediately calls after them. "Oh, there you are! I thought I heard ruckus coming from somewhere!"

Her hair is as pink as it has always been, and her fan is still tucked under her fingers. She isn't using it at all, which makes Gladion believe it must be part of a well-constructed charade. Hau grins at the sight of the woman. "It's good to be back! It's been so long, right?"

"It _has_! I heard so many rumors going around while you were gone!" Taeyong puts a hand on her waist, eyeing Moon with a smile. "I even heard _you_ had died!"

Moon swallows. "Yeah! Totally impossible!"

Hau, Gladion, and Lillie sigh collectively. Taeyong ignores this. "I knew they couldn't be right– look at you, here you are!" She walks close to the assassin and affectionately tugs at her cheeks. "The nerve of those pirates, huh? But thank goodness they are finally gone! So many things have happened around here!"

She lets go of Moon's cheeks. She rubs them with a little pout. Gladion smirks. "It's good to know those guys aren't bothering you anymore."

"Oh, I know you guys had something to do with _that_ , don't come at me with that. But all that can wait, of course!" Taeyong only now realizes that Lillie exists, and waves at her happily. "Good morning! I see you guys brought a new friend along!"

"Well…" Gladion clears his throat. "Lillie is my sister. She will be traveling with us for a while."

"Ooh, that sounds interesting! Are you guys up to anything dangerous again?" Her expression turns into absolute disapproval. "You should be taking a rest! Life is also about having fun and relaxing, some times!"

Moon sighs. "Why is everyone so insistent about that?"

"We actually are on a vacation of some sort," explains Lillie. "We will be around the Kandrus Dominion for a while. I suppose that unless Kandrus guards stumble with Moon and we get into trouble, we should be okay."

"I still don't get it," muses Moon, standing behind Lillie. "It happened so long ago. Things like those have an expiry date, right?"

"Not for threats like you," says Hau cheekily, earning a huff from her.

Taeyong nods at them, smiling gracefully. The gentle aura of this woman, leading a business on her own, never fails to surprise him. "So you will be here for some time, huh? Then, I suppose you could help me out with a little issue!"

Hau's eyebrows rise in askance. "What is it?"

"Well, this might sound ridiculous, but…"

With her fan, she points to a table at the center of the room, where a lonely man is sitting with a face that doesn't exactly invite to friendly chatter. He's looking onward with a frown, one of those that reminds him of Moon's challenge-worthy expression, but much angrier. He has tattoos on his arms.

"That man over there has been causing me trouble lately. He sits there and insists he's looking for a 'challenger', whatever that means, but since nobody dares even approach him, he just sits there with that angry dog face." Taeyong crosses her arms. "I have told him to leave too many times already. I don't want to know what he wants."

Moon looks at the dude carefully. "Hm. Maybe he just wants some soup. He's wearing that edgy leather vest." He can feel her eyes on the back of his neck, preening like a viper. "Reminds me of a certain edgy someone."

Two giggles erupt from his sides. Gladion clears his throat, throwing the three of them a glare. "I will go to deal with it so _she_ doesn't. I'm allowed to carry weapons with me, unlike a certain someone I know."

Moon flails her arms as Hau and Lillie hold her, preventing her from fighting with him in the middle of this very cozy cafeteria. The three march to a table Taeyong has set up for them, conveniently far from the troublesome man but in a proper place to watch the scene unfold. Taeyong also asks Moon why she's wearing a cloak twice her size, but Moon simply says that she deserves something of the size of her grandness.

The three sit quietly. They order drinks for themselves, and Hau orders an extra coffee for Gladion.

Gladion walks up to the man. "Excuse me." The stranger, who is drinking from a small cup of coffee, looks up. "The owner of this establishment has told me that you are causing trouble here. Could I know what it is you want?"

"Who are you, kid?" asks the man, gruff and angry. "I never asked for a kid to come my way. I'm looking for somebody who can give me a good time."

Okay, that sounds wrong on many levels, but Gladion decides to ask anyway. "Again, I'm willing to accept your, um, _challenge_ if you leave this place afterward. I might look like a kid, but I'm not as young as you might assume."

"I'm fine with leavin', I guess." The man offers his hand. Oh, this polite treatment sounds like the beginning of some business and Gladion is _not_ liking that. However, he still shakes his hand, taking a seat. "I work under a merchant association, and a buddy of mine told me he got ambushed while coming here and he was left to rot in the desert. I'm looking for the bastard who did that to them. I wanna settle things for him."

Oh.

Oh _no_.

"A… merchant? Kicked off from a wagon?" Gladion winces. "About half a year ago?"

"Yeah, around then! He was taking somebody from Ludwig Town to Gemstone Village when he got hit real bad! He had to crawl his way back home!"

"So it was that bad, huh?" The man nods eagerly. Gladion, shameless and completely aware of the situation, points to Moon, seated on a table at a corner of the room. She waves at them, smiling into her glass of water. "I'm a friend of hers. She did it."

"She _what_!?" He emerges from his seat swiftly, glaring at Moon. Blissfully ignorant about the situation, she drinks from her water placidly. "I'm gonna kill that bi–!"

Gladion grabs his forearm. "Sit down. Please."

Oh, Gladion knows very well that this man doesn't know what he's getting into, and he doesn't want to necessarily bring any trouble on Moon's way beyond pissing her off. Thankfully, the stranger sits down but keeps glaring daggers at her in the distance, like a cat.

"I know it might sound tempting to try to fight her– but trust me, she will kick your ass twice as hard and you won't be left with any possibility of survival if you provoke her." The man whips his eyes towards Gladion, who is leaning back against his chair with a dry smirk, arms crossed. "And when she's done, those two friends of hers will come at you, and then _I_ will. Trust me, you will be better off if we talk things through calmly, just the two of us."

"Wait, _fight_? I don't wanna fight anyone, kid," explains the man. Gladion's brow knits. "I know it sounds kinda weird because I almost went there and trust me, I would've given her a real bad time. But we always keep our word in our world. I'm a loyal man."

"Then? What do you propose?"

At this, the stranger simply jams his elbow on the wooden table, causing the mug to titter and dance. He holds his hand up, wiggling his fingers.

"In my profession, we settle things like real dudes do: with arm-wrestling matches." Calloused hands gesture at the air vaguely. Gladion is acutely aware of that man's muscles, as well as the tattoos– they add a dangerous vibe to this man's look, enhanced by those gray bushy eyebrows and the beard. "We're not into fighting. We do these and then have a beer together. I don't wanna have a beer with ya' but I wanna set the record straight."

Well, there's not much to be set straight, but Gladion gets the point. "So… an arm-wrestling match?"

"Yeah." A nod. "And I'll be gone. I'm sure a skinny guy like you won't give me many problems."

Gladion blinks. He observes the hand that he's being offered, and then the challenging, vigorous look in that man's eyes. His expression is a smirk and a frown, no longer angry but motivated to probably crack Gladion's hand into smithereens. He's giving him that kind of look that aims to belittle him; little does he know, that only fires Gladion up even more.

"Hmph." He removes his jacket, his scarf, and begins to pull up his sleeve. "Fine by me."

Gladion, much like an animal puffing its chest to assert dominance, slams his elbow on the table, showing the contoured muscles of his arm and shoulder, gained after months of working with the blade.

At the back, somebody chokes with their water and begins to cough violently at the sight.

The stranger seems taken aback by this as well, but Gladion doesn't understand. Sure, he likes to hang around in baggy clothes that he can't quite fill, but he's not completely paper-thin either. He's been getting some muscle thanks to his constant training; said effort happens to show best on his arms than anything else. He's not _ripped_ , but he has very appreciable curves on his skin. He's _not_ some sticky man.

A nod of approval. "Hm. Not bad." Then, a snicker. "I'm gonna break your arm into two, though, so you better–"

"Kick his ass, Gladbag!" screams somebody from the back, mouth muffled by his hands. When he turns to find the culprit, it's Hau that is standing up. Lillie is patting a wide-eyed Moon's back as she drinks water very slowly for whatever reason. "Show him what's the real deal!"

In the end, Gladion doesn't teach him 'what the real deal is', and he obviously loses. The man, however, is pleasantly surprised by his efforts and inspired by his will to protect that 'crazy woman with the crazy big cloak', so he invites him to a drink that Gladion accepts.

When he joins his friends, the coffee his friends had ordered for him has run cold. Lillie sips from her orange juice and Hau chugs at his bottle of flavored water.

Moon is squinting at him, cheeks pressed on her palms. "If you had let me deal with him, I would have kicked him through the window."

He drinks from his drink. "Exactly why I dealt with him myself. Taeyong wouldn't have appreciated a broken window."

"Oh, there goes Mr. Prideful."

"You're not one to talk, dressed up on something as big and fluffy as that."

Hau snorts. "Dude, he's right. You look like cotton candy."

Moon gives him one of those looks that don't look angry, but she looks challenging. Maybe they will be somewhere else entirely tomorrow, away from Gemstone Village and into a new situation, but he knows that challenge will never leave him alone.

In days like these he wishes he could have the vacations he wanted; seeing his friends laughing along to Moon's grumbles, only for her to laugh as well, though, makes it a little more worth it.

"My throat hurts from earlier," Moon coughs. Lillie pats her back soothingly. "I think that _edgelorditis_ finally caught me."

Or maybe not so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> /FALLS TO THE FLOOR
> 
> aaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA GENTLE GLADIMOON IS GENTLE GLADIMOON Gladion draping his coat over Moon's shoulders and being very heart eyes that she's so small I'm done
> 
> "When his fall ends and he finally stops spinning, he's covered in snow everywhere and he's facing the blue-ish sky, all of it dotted with snowflakes and the sudden shadow of a grinning rascal. / "You took a bit of a fall there, Gladbag," she says, snickering. / "That's what I get for following your ideas," - I love their dynamic so much I'm so full of uwus
> 
> "Gladion, they are holding hands!" - Moon is a hardcore haulillie shipper
> 
> "True Ribombee Honey, however, the most expensive out of them all, is rumored to only have a taste for couples that are in love." - You will see this coming back when you last expect it and I think you can already tell how
> 
> "Her head sticks out of the fur with furious blinks as he ties the bow to her neck. / He yanks at the ties and almost chokes the life out of her. / Stammering, she gulps. "What– what are you–" - OH NO MY UWUS
> 
> "Maybe I'm just doing this to ridicule you." / Which of course he isn't, and she knows this as well. The few gestures of genuine care they have displayed – be it the spare and very unusual hugs, be it the blankets in the library, be it her attempts to take him out from the library to eat so 'he doesn't get any smaller' – prove that whatever banter they have going on belies a much stronger bond between them. He knows Moon appreciates the gesture just like he appreciates her covering him with a blanket when he's sleeping." - they have grown so much they care for each other so much it's all so mutual their feelings for each other might be very very deep there and still not fleshed out but imagine. IMAGINE HOW BEAUTIFUL IT'S GONNA BE WHEN IT HAPPENS.
> 
> "Lillie, Moon is a complete danger to society," says Gladion, whilst very aware that he's covered that dangerous specimen with his very own cloak. "She will get you in danger. I don't mind her shenanigans, but you might." - They're rivals but they still care for each other I'm so DONE
> 
> "Gladion, much like an animal puffing its chest to assert dominance, slams his elbow on the table, showing the contoured muscles of his arm and shoulder, gained after months of working with the blade." - I HATE THIS LINE. I HATE IT. I HATE THIS 'MEN BE MEN' LINE. I HATE IT SO FUCKING MUCH BUT I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DEFINE THE SENTIMENT BETTER THAN THIS. I'M SO SORRY. I HATE IT TOO.
> 
> Moon: *consistently joke-mocks Gladion because he's v thin and can't fill in the clothes he's so adamant about*  
> Gladion: *rolls sleeve up*  
> Moon: "At the back, somebody chokes with their water and begins to cough violently at the sight."
> 
> Next chapter is like a crackhouse powerhouse fluffhouse and I hope you're ready
> 
> we're gonna do some cooking
> 
> (and we will be back to Gemstone Village. i'll miss it. i love this town. it's so pretty. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa)


	5. Warning: Fire Hazard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group tries to cook. Emphasis on "tries".

They arrive at the Jaguar Farmlands in two days. The trip hadn't been a whim or a random suggestion, but more of a reasonable request from Lillie. While Gemstone Village had offered enough entertainment for two days, it hadn't taken much for the insufferable bag of nerves called Moon to insist on moving, and it hadn't taken much time for the rest to agree. While Gladion and Lillie enjoy the cold far more than the heat, a blizzard had been about to hit before they left.

Gladion wasn't very happy about leaving so suddenly, nor about basically going back on their steps. Going towards Altaria Bay, much like always, would impose some sort of hinder in their way, in this case a blizzard. Moon had offered to go into the blizzard anyway and just fight their way through like the brute she is, but she had later made the clever observation that it might not be the best idea.

While camping somewhere close to the Shongshu Watchpoint, close to where they had first met Hau – as the sorcerer very happily reminds them – Moon is commenting that she wants to visit Guzma if he's around for some 'badass business', which only further enforces Gladion's idea that insane people get along really well.

Though he wouldn't say Moon is _that_ sort of insane Guzma is. She's just very active. And things he doesn't want to admit to himself because thinking of Moon in a _deep_ manner makes him feel very weird.

He also feels very weird when Lillie says the following, "Don't hand me the pot. I… can't really cook much."

And he feels even weirder when, once they have arrived at the Jaguar Farmlands, Moon slams a pot on the stove and turns to Lillie with undivided dedication. "I'm gonna teach you how to cook even if it takes my life and we gotta burn this house to the ground."

Gladion's eyebrow twitches. That's how today began.

They had been given a house to sleep in for the weekend. Guzma, as Moon had expected, is not there, but that doesn't hold her back from staying to carry out her agenda of teaching Lillie how to cook – even though she doesn't know how to cook much herself. When Gladion had offered his quaint assistance, Moon had slapped his hand down and told him not to interfere, which made him conclude she simply doesn't give an absolute fuck anymore.

Hau also offers his assistance with the task. Moon ties a ridiculously bright yellow apron and puts on a bandana that almost covers her brows. "I can help too, y'know. I know a few tricks!"

Moon rejects his help, albeit more softly. "I know you two are as interested in Lillie's formation as I am, but I can handle this just fine. You can stand back and watch us create the best cakes, bread, and soups in existence."

"Shouldn't you start with the basics first?"

Moon puts her hands on her hips. "Who says that?"

"Probably any cooking authority, which you aren't," says Gladion.

Moon grabs a wooden spoon and points it at him, an eyebrow arched. Then, she travels the distance between them to pat him on the shoulder with it. "I'm the authority here, and I have plans in this area." She gestures around her to encompass her surroundings, eyes widening emphatically. "I got plans for tomorrow and Lillie's needs fall in line with me spectacularly."

Lillie giggles in the background. She's touching around the kitchen aimlessly. As much as Gladion knows, Lillie is capable of making pancakes, but that might be the only thing she's ever done. Being corseted in the cottons of royalty can do that to you. "I should have known you had something else in mind. Your eyes were _sparkling_ when I mentioned I can't cook much."

"That's not because she's interested," comments Gladion, looking around the house. "That's because she's planning to cause trouble."

"Don't be rude!" Moon crosses her arms, tapping her foot. "I genuinely wanna teach Lils some stuff! You're all being mean for no reason at all, right, Hau?" She blinks when her question is met with no answer. "Hau? Where did he go?"

Gladion hears rustling from somewhere behind him, out of the small kitchen. This house had been given to them from Guzma's parents as a thank you gift, at least temporarily. It's their holiday house a bit further into the wheat plantations and closer to the windmills, where the sun beats twice as hard but the wind is twice as pleasant. The house is fully equipped with both furniture and food.

This last element, the _food_ , is the only thing Gladion can remember as he looks for Hau, knowingly heading to the storage. When he swings the ajar door fully open, he finds Hau not only surrounded by food on the floor, but by broken jars of translucent liquids and bags full of now shattered plates.

A last little package falls on his head as he blinks up to Gladion. Moon and Lillie peep from Gladion's shoulders.

"Well, this is a problem," says Moon in a fine deadpan. "I was gonna use all those goodies to teach Lils. You're gonna have to buy new stuff for me now, mister!"

"I… was tryin' to be useful and looking for flour." Seated on the floor, he points at the wobbly metallic shelves. One of them collapses downwards with a screech. "Those things are rusty, dude. I just wanted to–"

Another shelf wobbles and a packet of something topples over the shelf and lands on Hau's head, spreading a mist of white powder all over him. Lillie and Moon erupt into giggles that soon turn into hysterical laughter, with the assassin holding herself together with a hand on the doorknob. Gladion chuckles and shakes his head.

Hau blinks the powder off his eyes and takes a reckless lick of his lips. "Oh, that's powdered sugar! That's amazing!"

"I wouldn't eat any of that," says Gladion, offering Hau a hand to stand up. "It might be expired, for all we know. Guzma's family doesn't spend much time here."

Moon approaches him as he stands up, and brushes a finger across Hau's cheek. Despite having heard Gladion's words clearly, she licks the sugar off her finger, and then her lips. "Oh yeah, that's tasty."

Gladion is aware that Moon will never listen to his advice, so he doesn't take any offense by this; if she gets a severe stomach infection for intoxicating herself with powdered sugar, he will be there to laugh it off with her. Or, he will beat the shit out of that infection with a stick. Whatever works best for her.

Moon swats the powder off Hau's lean arms and shoulders. "You made a mess all around here and I'm _not_ happy about it. A waste of food. A waste of potential. A waste of my dreams," Moon gestures all around her. "Imagine that one of those packets had, I don't know, a ticket to a secret paradise! Maybe even a treasure!"

Lillie walks over to Moon and puts a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Moon, you are beyond delusional."

"I'm being positive and none of you can bear it, that's what." Done with Hau's shoulders, she points to the ground below her. "Somebody is gonna clean all of this, somebody is gonna fix those shelves and one edgelord with a messy sorcerer is gonna go grab new goodies for us to cook with."

Gladion squints at her, skeptical. "Do you even know how to clean?"

She cracks a grin. "Of course! I just gotta grab you by the hair and–"

"Not _that_."

"Then, I can use your–"

Gladion tugs at both her cheeks, annoyed. "You can't use me for any of this, don't be ridiculous!"

Eventually, the four of them make it out of the storage room after Moon threatens Gladion with a jar of cookies and he almost hits her with a rolling pin – a utensil Moon had mentioned he used before to no use, which bothered him even further. Hau and Gladion agree to head downtown to get groceries while Lillie and Moon clean up, mostly to appease Lillie's ticking eyes and her constant twitches for cleanliness. The blonde has stated that she would rather do the cleaning herself just to make sure everything is in place, and also proceeds to help Hau get rid of all the powdered sugar.

"Lils– hey, Lils," Moon calls, nudging her side. "You could say Hau is a snack now, eh?"

Lillie hums in thought, a finger on her bottom lip. She gives her a daring smile, half a smirk. "Yes, you could."

Moon's eyes widen like saucers as Lillie follows Hau into one of the dormitories. Her jaw has no time to hit the floor, though, because Gladion is coming from behind her with disapproval written all over him. He reaches out and drags her back to the kitchen.

"Gladbag, as much as they say that sweeping a lady off her feet is romantic, _this_ doesn't qualify as such."

"Your tact for romanticism is as sensitive as a hammer to the hand." For some odd reason, she nods. "What are you planning with Lillie and Hau? Are you planning to set them up on a date or something? Maybe poison my food so I will be out of your way in your schemes?"

"I would _never_ poison a mate's food!"

"The fact that you wouldn't do it only under the premise of your plans makes it all even more suspicious," states Gladion dryly. "Just what are you up to now?"

Moon shrugs. An impish glint of playfulness shows through the hollow nonchalance. "Oh, absolutely nothing. I'm planning things for tomorrow for all of us as a group– because, as you might have noticed, I'm kinda the glue of the group."

"I hope you're joking."

"I am, but that's beside the point." Moon walks over to the countertops and smoothly opens a drawer, taking out a red and white plaid piece of thick fabric. She's holding it with pride. "Look at what I got! It's a picnic blanket!"

Her stating the obvious isn't new. The blanket has a standard enough design for it immediately look like it's meant for a day outdoors, which brings many questions to mind. "A picnic? You want to go to a picnic?"

Her placid grin turns sharp around the edges, sneering. _Oh no_.

"Yeah! And we're gonna make it a romantic one!"

"Oh, please no."

"Please _yes_!" Moon insists, hopping over to his side like the overenthusiastic rabbit she is. "I mean, it's not gonna be super romantic. I don't even know how to do that. I don't have a degree in romantic arts or however you wanna call it, and it'd be kinda awkward for both us single fellows." Yeah. Plenty. "I'm just gonna make it all nice and pretty. I read in books that romance happens during picnics!"

Gladion rolls his eyes, folding his arms. "Please, do enlighten me."

Moon holds one finger up. "First, there are the romantic naps! Remember when Hau mentioned he enjoyed sleeping on my lap? Exactly _that_!" If Moon hadn't become the skilled assassin she is, perhaps she would have been a talented academic– her memory is quite sharp. "Taking naps outdoors is supposedly super romantic! I don't get why but the protagonists always go blushy-blushy when they do that!"

Chuckling, he shakes his head at the absurdity of it all. "That's ridiculous."

"And I agree! But I bet Lillie and Hau are into those ideas. It's the perfect set-up for that," Moon explains. She uncurls another of her fingers. "Second, the food! Everyone loves food!"

Pensive, he nods. "I guess Hau does love food. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Food is the gateway to love, Gladbag. You have no sensitivity at all." Nor does she, but he lets it slide. "Having a full tummy and a content mind is key to a fruitful romantic moment! I didn't just make this up, it's in the books!"

It's good to know that at least she doesn't get it because he for sure doesn't either. Moon knows about romantic tropes, but not about romance per se; Gladion can also recite a few tropes he's learned from the novels he read as a kid, but he's never really had the opportunity to put those to the test. Moon is eager to do just _that_ , so things might get interesting.

"Say you make a good meal, and say they end up napping together." Moon nods, encouraging him to go on. "What tells you they will get together?

"My superb intuition and experience."

"None of those qualify you as a proper matchmaker, let alone a date planner."

Moon puffs her cheeks in annoyance. She adjusts the apron around her with stubborn motions. "I could even get _you_ a date, and that's a lot." Her snarky comment doesn't phase him at all. "In any case, I just want them to snuggle and be happy. If they finally admit to each other they're desperately in love–"

"Which they aren't, because that will take _a lot_ of time."

" _Ahem_." Moon frowns at him, pointing a spoon she's just retrieved from her pocket and brushing it under his chin. "As long as they're happy, I don't care about what they do– no, not like that. They're responsible people. I trust them to be happy _and_ responsible."

"So you think they're responsible with their choices?" Moon nods. "Then you could follow their example. We could be traveling much lighter if you had–"

A sudden cloud of white dust hits his head from above, his hair and his clothes as Moon dunks the entire pack of powdered sugar over him. She even shakes the remains out of the paper package until there's not even a speck left. Gladion, one hand lifted to talk, turns silent.

Moon saunters close, lowering his hand with a knowing smirk. "See, if you were a little sweeter, maybe I wouldn't have to sweeten you like this. We both know I can get overzealous with the sugar, Gladbag."

Spoon tucked on her front pocket, she puts her hands right under his cheeks, cupping them to wipe the white dust from his pale cheeks. Gladion is remarkably aware of the brush of her nails on his jaw as she wipes it off, aware of how impossible close she is, that she's laughing to herself as his face heats up and–

 _What the fuck_. His stomach flips. "What– what are you doing?"

"Removing the sugar. I told you five seconds ago." She's clearly unaware of what she's doing– of course, she's under the veil of ignorance that renders _anything_ she does ridiculously harmless. Then, why is he having such a physical reaction over this? "Arceus, your face feels hot. Is the sugar bad or something? Does it burn?"

Before Gladion can say that it's not quite the sugar – that it's her proximity, that it's her touch, that it's _a lot of things he can't quite place and he hates this so much_ – Moon removes her hands and takes another chanceful lick at her fingers, all the while looking at him. It feels like a soccer punch to his stomach and it tingles in an almost uncomfortable churn.

"It doesn't taste bad. I would have expected it to taste like death and edge considering it was on your– _Gladion_? What's up?"

He has taken a pair of steps back and away from her; away from this physical reaction, convinced that if he gets away and forgets about whatever _that_ had been, he will get over it. Gladion has cupped her cheeks before, once to bring her back to her senses, and a few to irritate her. He's never done it with any special intent, and he never expected her to interpret it as anything beyond that.

So why does _her_ touch make him _blush_ like a damn schoolboy?

"I'm going to wash my face," he says briskly, retreating to the hall. "But I swear that next time you do that, we will have a problem. I won't hold back the next time we have a kitchen brawl, I'll tell you that."

If he means the sugar situation or the blush situation, he doesn't know; both are equally as bad.

Moon leans against the counter with folded arms, smirking. "Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do, snowball? Blow some frost on my face?"

He stomps away from her, unaware that she's become thoughtful in his wake. She brings a finger to her lips, hesitant as to what to make of this.

Then, her eyes widen.

"Holy shit, did he get embarrassed over getting his face full of sugar?" That had been a very, very funny and somehow even _pleasant_ expression. "I'm a genius. I gotta do that more often."

* * *

The kitchen situation goes haywire all too quickly, but it hadn't been meant to happen this way.

Gladion had left Lillie and Moon alone in the kitchen for approximately half an hour. He had been very aware that Moon would need at least five minutes of solace to create disaster. Giving her utensils of any kind would speed the process up, so she has _plenty_ of opportunities to screw things up. Knowing her, she wouldn't do it by accident, but she'd probably blow the whole kitchen up just because she can.

When he gets to the house, however, the building is still standing and nothing seems off about it. There a gentle scent of spices and bread coming from the kitchen's window, weirdly appetizing.

"Then, you gotta add the water– yeah, but a little more gently." Lillie pours a jar full of water on a bowl under Moon and Hau's supervision. Maybe they're scared of it catching on fire. "That's it. See how gross and yellow that's gotten? That's because of the oil."

"What on Earth are you three doing?"

Hau, Lillie, and Moon turn around from the bowl to blink at him. Their faces are splashed with flour, Lillie's apron has spots of drying oil and Hau has something sticky and a little gross on his fingers, maybe dough. There's a bowl of _something_ at a corner with dark spots that Gladion doesn't want to know about.

Lillie points at the marginated blob like it's a disease. "We tried to make cookies, but Hau used the wrong kind of flour and it's inedible, now. It was a complete failure." The Empress sighs, looking at her friend nearly apologetically. "Sorry, Hau. It tastes awful."

Hau looks at her indignantly. "Dude, I already apologized for that! Everyone knows I was the first one wanting to make cookies… what a bummer."

"The dough didn't even taste like cookies," comments Moon, shaking her head. "It tasted like I assume hell must taste like, mixed with sugar and probably expired chocolate."

 _Arceus on a bike_. "Are you guys even checking–"

"The expiry dates? Of course we are," Moon says, grinning brightly. "But most of them are scribbled so badly I can barely read them, and we all know dates are merely orientative. We can't go around overspending food like that. That's not okay."

Lillie and Hau mimic her, shaking their heads as well.

"So that dough was awful," says Moon, pointing at the failed cookie dough at the back. "And we're not gonna touch that ever again. It's gonna sit there for eternities until some foul demon comes to pick it up and take it back to the dumpster it belongs to."

The blonde smiles sourly. "We called the dough Charles."

Moon nods enthusiastically to verify this fact. "Charles?"

"It has the hypothetical name of some elitist rich kid that fights with kids with tea on his hands and deserves to go to hell," explains Hau. His wording belongs to Moon's lexicon more than Hau's, and she's smiling to herself as if she had come up with it. "And to be fair, that _thing_ fought my tongue. It was _horrible_!"

Hau shakes his head to forget the flavor. Lillie giggles into her hand.

Gladion looks over the other products on the countertops. There is a knife, a few garlic cloves and what seems to be an actual piece of cheese. There are some herbs on a jar as well, like rosemary and oregano. "What are you doing now, anyway? This looks more like a pharmacy than an actual kitchen."

"Oh, we are making bread!" cheers Lillie, moving so Gladion can see the bowl with the dough, all of it in development. "Moon knows how to make bread!"

Green eyes scream 'oh do you' and charcoal irises roll with a shake of her head. "I bought a book the other day– well, I didn't _buy_ it, I just read over it and learned the basics. I couldn't be bothered to buy a book about something like this."

"Oh, something like a basic skill that everyone should develop? You mean something _definitely_ worth buying a book about?"

Gladion walks over to them, dropping the grocery bags on the table. Hau runs to the bags with interest.

She waves her hand dismissively. " _Please_ , I don't need a book to make a simple loaf of bread. Even a kid could do this." Moon digs a finger into the rough dough. Her eyes sparkle as it springs back into shape. "Look at this gorgeous dough. It could win beauty contests. I'm gonna make you a loaf you approve of, Gladbag."

Chuckling, Gladion looks at the barely mixed dough. It has some spots that have more flour than oil, and the bottom of the bowl is excessively runny with water. He points at the herbs that have made it onto the wooden surface. "What are you going to do with these?"

Lillie shakes her head. "Don't tell me you want to take over the process, big brother?"

"If I don't take over, you guys will end up burning the house down."

Moon nudges him out of the way so hard he nearly falls to the floor. "Shall I remind you that I baked Hau a delicious almond cake for his birthday, you pretentious know-it-all?"

" _You_ are calling me pretentious while wanting to bake bread without a book?" asks Gladion, shaking his head. "I can see the house crumbling down to smithereens today."

" _Oh_?" Moon snickers. "What if _you_ crumble down to smithereens just with my _fists_ , eh?"

Moon smirks, Gladion smirks, and Lillie clasps her hands on both their shoulders with a pacifying smile, one of those that could cure pneumonia and clear the rain. The rivalry sparks immediately calm down.

"All right, you two. I think it will be better if only _me_ and Hau stay here. You can go to that corner and watch us cook."

For once, Moon makes the smartest observation of them all. "Lils, you don't know how the oven works! It's safe to assume Hau might know, but..."

Yeah. Hau _might_ know. But _might_ is not enough certainty when it comes to safety in a house that isn't theirs.

"We will figure it out. But having you two competing over cooking of all things is absurd. I refuse to have such a thing in what from now on is _our_ kitchen." Lillie makes use of force and turns them around so they are walking away from the counter. "Leave this up to me and Hau. You have told me all I need to know, Moon."

She insists, though. "But, you two can't make bread on your own! At least I remember a little of the recipe! And I–"

Moon shuts up all of a sudden. Her lips zip shut and her eyes widen as Lillie pushes them away to a cautionary distance. Gladion doesn't know what it is that she's thinking about, what she has realized, but she's gone quiet and has stopped talking. He finds it unfair that they are being pushed away from the kitchen just because of some meaningless banter. Proves that their friendship is both sides uncanny and misunderstood.

Though it would have been fun to splash Moon with more flour as payback from earlier. Just for kicks and giggles.

"We will manage! Just wait here until we are done with the dough. We don't want to waste any more flour just because of you two bickering like an old marriage." She leaves them right in a corner. Gladion _hates_ being treated like a kid. "Unless you two can promise you will _not_ pick a fight over any of this."

Lillie, knowing that she won't get anywhere with this, retreats and lets them be. Gladion notices with squinted eyes that she's leaving with a skip in her step, an that when she gets to Hau and the bowl of bread dough, she's beaming.

His eyes widen and shift to Moon, who observes the scene with a knowing smirk. The smirk only widens when he shifts the question back to her.

"Told you Lils could be kinda cunning." With a shrug, she gestures towards the two lovebirds as they knead the dough with a spoon. "She looks like this super cute lamb, but she… I don't wanna say this because it's super mean, but she's got some Lusamine blood in her. That's all I'll say."

Gladion nods quietly and observes the scene. He doesn't enjoy being left at the sidelines like this, but they are enjoying themselves even if it's obvious that they have absolutely _no_ idea about what they're doing.

"Aren't you going to tell them they're adding the yeast at the wrong time?"

Moon shrugs again, grinning. "Let them have fun. They got it under control. It's not like the bread is gonna blow up or something, _right_?"

They share a complicit look. A wink from her, a sigh from him.

"So _that_ 's why you didn't complain." Moon chuckles at his comment. "I should have known you wouldn't stay silent for that long if it wasn't for an ulterior reason."

"Oh, so you finally admit my insistence is praise-worthy, eh?" Moon asks, smiling; it should look sincere, but it looks playful and crinkly in her eyes. She's all teasing and fun times. "About time you admitted my plans aren't always that bad. Look at them, having fun and being happy."

Gladion breathes a small laugh. "What if they set the kitchen on fire?"

She grins. "Collateral damage."

"A whole house on fire is just _collateral damage_?"

"It's not ours," Moon comments, nonchalant. She keeps her hands in the pockets of her shorts. It's mildly warm for winter. "If the house burns down, they won't find a culprit. We'll just say a mafia looking for bread burnt it down in a fit of rage."

Her strange and extravagant stories will _never_ surprise him. If anything, her creativity amuses him greatly. "A bread mafia? Really?"

"Whatever Lillie and Hau are about to make, without our assistance, will be rage-inducing anyway." Her voice turns wondrous. "Maybe burning the house down from the get-go will help out somehow."

"Arceus, you're such an arsonist."

"Watch out for your hair, then. I might not be an actual pyromaniac, but I might cut it off when I get my daggers back."

And they laugh it off, him more quietly and her much louder.

At the actual kitchen, Hau dumps the dough out of the bowl when it has a decent consistency, and Lillie is already taking out a baking tray. Bread, though, needs time to rise due to the yeast's properties– Gladion doesn't know how it exactly works to a molecular level, but he _knows_ that the dough needs at least half an hour to rise. It's almost a cliché in the cuisine world; one of the few things he knows.

Gladion raises his hand to object; Moon lowers it very slowly.

"Dude, this is gonna be some dope bread! We can have this with oil and some garlic!" Hau cheers as he gives the dough a few affectionate pats. The dough sinks miserably. "What if we filled it with chocolate? That'd be _so_ good!"

"My arteries would prefer something lighter, thank you," giggles Lillie, gently putting the dough away from Hau's hands. She gives it a few kneads so it becomes perfectly round. "Gosh, it looks so cute! Should we take a bite?"

Gladion, in the background, almost has a stroke when he sees Hau take a decisive pinch from the mixture and taste it. That looks _so_ wrong. "That's not half bad. Kinda raw. Did we add salt?"

"I have no idea– Moon, did you add the salt?"

Moon raises her hands. "I'm not in charge anymore! I might have, or maybe I didn't!"

Hau smiles, nearly a smirk. "You can be so petty sometimes." He turns to Lillie again with a toothy smile. "Let's pretend she did add the salt. I think she added some white stuff in it– like, other than the flour. And if it doesn't have salt–"

"It will taste like absolute garbage," comments Gladion from the back.

"It won't! We can stuff some chocolate in it and just wing it, y'know. That's how cooking works." That's something Moon would be saying and not Hau. That's appalling. "Maybe we can add some of that in, too? We can make it spicy and–"

"Okay, that's where I draw the line!" Moon exclaims from the back, marching over to them. "First, you _can't_ eat this dough!"

Gladion sighs, relieved. "Thank Arceus somebody said it–"

Moon slaps the dough. _Hard_. "Don't you see it has _no shape_? You gotta knead it a little or else it's gonna taste like garbage! You gotta knead the flavor in!" She grins and begins to knead it little by little. "You fools thinking you could cook something like this without a master baker. _Little fools_."

At the back, Gladion turns around and gently hits the wall with his head over and over.

Hau whistles as he watches Moon pound and knead the dough. It has become a little bigger. "You got some technique! Ain't you gonna break the dough like that, though? Won't that make it, uh, bad?"

"As far as I know, breaking the dough once or twice won't do much damage," comments Lillie, observing Moon's moves with keen attention. "I think it will bring in more air and make it fluffier, right?"

Moon beams. "Totally!" Gladion wants to object, but he doesn't. Something in Moon's expression makes him hold himself back. "So I guess we gotta get this in the oven, then? Oh, we _totally_ need to do those rustic cuts on the surface to make it look fancy! Bring me a knife!"

Lillie hesitantly hands her a knife. Gladion knows jack-shit about making bread, but he still walks over. "You have to let it rise first!" He thinks, at least. He's heard it somewhere. He _loves_ antagonizing Moon.

"Letting things rise is for cowards!" She slams the dough on a baking tray and swiftly traces a cross in the middle. Moon opens the oven wide. "In this house we bake bread as superheroes do; we do it with super cool moves! Watch me!"

Moon miraculously ducks the baking tray into the oven. Both sides of the tray fit in the same level, something he's _never_ managed to do on the first try. Hau helps out by kicking the door shut. Both high five each other with wide grins, bringing the Aedus siblings a sense of dread down their spines.

"We gotta turn the oven on now!" Hau looks at the settings, leaning over. "There are a fuckton of buttons. This oven looks so _old_ , man."

"Then we gotta turn it to the highest temperature!" Oh _no_. "Everyone knows that old ovens can't heat things properly, and bread needs heat to cook itself, that's science! Maybe if we give a little blast…"

Gladion very carefully takes Lillie by the shoulders and guides her a few steps back. "Gladion? What's wrong? Aren't you going to stop her?"

"I will have much more fun seeing her somehow fail and probably break a bone or two," he snickers.

Lillie's eyes widen. "A broken bone? What are you–?"

There is a crank being turned and clicks coming from the oven, and at first, things seem fine. Moon brushes her hands on her apron and gives the oven's glass a few teasing taps, whispering to the bread to 'bake itself like a good boy' until something _wrong_ vibrates from within, coming out in a ripple of pressure and shattered glass and _fire_ that sends Moon a few feet behind, toppling over the table and behind. Hau falls to the floor, and Lillie and Gladion support themselves on the counter while the fire continues roaring.

The fires flare for a few more seconds and a smaller explosion without detonation ripples, but then dies. All that's left within the oven is smoke and probably ashy bits of what could have once been bread.

Moon reaches up to the table and supports her elbows and head on the surface, dazed.

Hau eyes her skeptically. "Dude. You had _one_ job."

Old ovens, per what Gladion had heard, are extremely sensitive to sudden outbursts of heat, but he had always thought it was just a legend. Seeing the myth come true right before his very inexperienced eyes is a sight to behold. He might be the most experienced one of them all, but his experience is also _very_ lackluster.

"When I said I'd burn the house down, I never meant it literally," Moon comments, sighing. She staggers forward, one hand on the table. Moon, one hand over her eyes, whistles. "Damn. We _blew_ Miss Kaipo's oven up. That's bad."

" _We_?" asks Gladion, irritated. " _You_ did! You put the oven at a temperature that was too high!"

"It was a collaborative effort. None of us knows what we're doing!" Moon grins. There is a little cut on her cheek, probably from the shattered glass. "This is everyone's fault for not stopping me from making the wrong decision. We can probably get away with it, somehow."

The four stride close to the oven. There are bits of glass hanging from the explosion's gap. A terrible smell steams from within, much like a dragon's mouth.

Hau makes a very smart yet forlorn question. "Dude, is the bread burnt?"

Considering the oven has been pretty much obliterated, it's safe to assume it is.

Moon wordlessly opens the oven with her boot. It bounces open. Some glass falls out. She takes the tray out with her hand wrapped in cloths. A mount of ashen crumbs meets their eyes. A collective sigh is shared.

"Yep. Burnt to a crisp." Moon brings a hand to her chest. "Oh, Jacques. You left us too soon."

Hau imitates her, and so does Lillie. Moon brings the tray to the counter and inspects the remains with Gladion right by her side.

He takes the leap and makes a guess. "Not sure how it went wrong?"

Moon turns to him and stares for a long, long time. Her gaze has no real emotions to it other than a little glaze of an undoubted daze from the hit she took earlier. There is determination too, a sharp edge making her look concentrated and very pensive. Her eyes have never looked sharper than this. The blue swimming in the coal almost blinds him.

Then, she puts her hands on his shoulders. "I name you chief of the cooking operation. I will trust you next time. I'm gonna take a nap."

And Moon begins to walk away, leaving Gladion with the burnt bread and a mess in his hands. Hau chases after her. "Hold on– what do ya' mean you're gonna take a _nap_? It's not even noon yet!"

"I think I might have a concussion. I'm gonna go set it down in my bed." An exaggerated yawn, totally fake; she waves her hand. Gladion can hear the smile in her voice. "You guys deal with the rest. I trust you fully!"

And two seconds afterward, Moon's knees buckle and she collapses on the floor of the hallway. Leave it to her to hit her head so hard she passes out whilst baking _bread_ , a task that is supposed to be easy and fun.

Well, there goes her idea for a picnic. Gladion sighs, walking over to her.

Lillie follows him. "Is she okay? I suppose she hit her head a little hard earlier, huh?"

She isn't surprised about this either. It says a _lot_ about Moon's behavior and reputation in Zeffarei.

"She will be fine." He effortlessly swings her body over his shoulder. "I will leave her in her room to sleep this off and hopefully we can make some lunch without Miss Kitchen Bomber. And let's pray Miss Kaipo doesn't notice we messed things up this badly."

Lillie watches him ascend the stairs with Moon in his arms. The image looks a little more tender than it should under the sunlight coming from the windows. It might be her mind making things up, but… she squints, tilting her head as Gladion disappears into the top floor of the house.

"Yo, Lillie!" Hau strides close, wiping his hands clean with a cloth. "Maybe we should get all that cleaned up before Gladbag comes back." Seeing she isn't giving him a direct answer, he leans a little closer to her, concerned. "What's going on?"

"Huh?" She blinks out of her reverie, offering him an easy smile. Hau looks at her with a smile twice as big; it's always the same with him. Reciprocate smiles, laughs, and tenderness. "Sorry for spacing out, it's nothing; I was just… thinking, I suppose."

Lillie is eventually pulled away by Hau's butterflies and sunshine, but her mind still retains the small detail that Gladion, the eternal rival of Moon, sometimes holds her gentler than he would ever admit. It's in her mind, pushed to a side, like an afterthought; a very strong one.

How _curious_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi
> 
> i am BACK /DABS
> 
> lonashipping week (it's officially gladmoon day but I am a word wizard) prevented me from updating but we're back to our schedule as usual foks. back at it again with our bs BHGFUJIDEKSO and we have a doozy in this one
> 
> This is rhe chapter where it looks like I snorted a bag of crack and started writing but no. i was doing fine. it's just that I love making these people do the most random shit and it's LOVELY + there was some saucy lonashipping as well so thaT'S VERY COOL
> 
> "You made a mess all around here and I'm not happy about it. A waste of food. A waste of potential. A waste of my dreams," - I love Moon so much
> 
> "Say you make a good meal, and say they end up napping together." Moon nods, encouraging him to go on. "What tells you they will get together?" / "My superb intuition and experience." / "None of those qualify you as a proper matchmaker, let alone a date planner." - I LOVE THEM SO MUCH LOOK AT THEM
> 
> Spoon tucked on her front pocket, she puts her hands right under his cheeks, cupping them to wipe the white dust from his pale cheeks. Gladion is remarkably aware of the brush of her nails on his jaw as she wipes it off, aware of how impossible close she is, that she's laughing to herself as his face heats up and– / What the fuck. His stomach flips. "What– what are you doing?" - gladion my dude you're reacting to someone you're lowkey attracted to touching you. fucking GET A MOVE ON
> 
> "Holy shit, did he get embarrassed over getting his face full of sugar?" That had been a very, very funny and somehow even pleasant expression. "I'm a genius. I gotta do that more often." - dumbass number dos
> 
> "Yep. Burnt to a crisp." Moon brings a hand to her chest. "Oh, Jacques. You left us too soon." / Hau imitates her, and so does Lillie. Moon brings the tray to the counter and inspects the remains with Gladion right by her side. - I love this group so, so, so much
> 
> "I think I might have a concussion. I'm gonna go set it down in my bed." An exaggerated yawn, totally fake; she waves her hand. Gladion can hear the smile in her voice. "You guys deal with the rest. I trust you fully!" / And two seconds afterward, Moon's knees buckle and she collapses on the floor of the hallway. - She's dead
> 
> i'M NOT EVEN GONNA COMMENT ON THE COOKING SEGMENT BECAUSE THAT WAS A DISASTER but this is the recipe I used for reference!!!! https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/videos/techniques/how-make-bread
> 
> you might wonder 'what reference they literally cooked nothing'
> 
> cooking nothing ALSO TAKES TALENT LET MY CHILDREN BE A DISASTER AT COOKING
> 
> we're going on a nice funky picnic next gents. it might get emotional and there might be soft lona there somewhere FHGJFJKDÑSL


	6. Upstream Waters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tender talks and happy picnics lead to relieving realizations under the stars of the Jaguar Farmlands.

"Okay, let me get this straight; you and Hau have the _habit_ of holding hands? For real?"

A giggle. "You are making this look like a bigger deal than it truly is!"

Moon kneels and puts her bottle of water under the small stream of frost-biting water. The Jaguar Farmlands no longer have lush forests on the outskirts, but some bleak bare trees with pines and a few other trees of the perennial kind. The temperature is surprisingly lukewarm with a few chilly breezes around them. The sun has very few clouds to compete against in this fine morning, yet it provides little comfort to rival the cold of winter.

Moon is doing much better than Lillie in that department. She graduated from her skimpy traveling cloak to a thicker jacket that Hau had forced her to buy, along with Gladion's penetrating glare of insistence. Her gray cloak resides folded in her backpack now, which she's left at the blanket that the guys are guarding back at the open field before their temporary residence.

It won't be a surprise if Moon finds the cloak set ablaze by Gladion's hand, because, as he had said, 'that thing barely classifies as fabric, let alone an actual garment'.

Lillie, on the other hand, holds tight to her thick jacket. As Moon has learned over the months, Lillie has an eternal fight with the weather that forces her to seek absolute coziness everywhere she goes. Everything has a little bit of fur and a little more coverage than needed.

Moon had also discovered that one of Lillie's favorite ways to get warm is holding Hau's hand, something the former had discovered this morning when they had been looking for a place to lay the blanket. Gladion hadn't even noticed the detail, much to Moon's disappointment.

"Lils, as your loyal bodyguard, I can't believe you never told me about this!" Moon shakes her head and shakes the bottle to clean it, then puts it under the stream once more. Lillie sits to her right, feet over the small pond of frozen water. "The night I came back from Bakiria I asked you if anything interesting had happened."

"I didn't want to make you feel like you had missed many things! Not much happened other than… I suppose me and Hau growing closer. I thought you had already considered that!" Lillie smiles at her, seeking forgiveness she knows she doesn't need. "Also, you aren't my bodyguard anymore, either! Well, you _are_ , but look at us!"

Certainly, they aren't in a situation where Moon is a bodyguard as much as she's her _friend_ – maybe her best friend – but the warrior blatantly ignores that. "That's not the point! We spent actual _nights_ reading together and you never told me about this!"

"In my defense, I didn't believe it was a big deal. We have held hands before, and you _know_ that."

"Look, I still don't get the deal with holding hands and all that corny stuff. You told me it's like, a _need_ sometimes; maybe for warmth, maybe for comfort, but I have this feeling you aren't that focused on the… physical needs."

She blinks. "Care to elaborate?"

Moon sighs, as though aggravated, but there's a smile on her face. "You and Hau are always together. I get that you two get along; _fine_ , you get along, but _holding hands_? That's beyond getting along. You always have this super sweet smile on your face."

"I smile a lot!" she laughs, waving her statement off. "And you smile very often as well. You are being absurd."

The assassin fetches the bottle from under the stream, gives it a few chugs, and boops Lillie's nose with her finger. "Indeed, ma'am, I smile a lot too– but I have never made you smile like that– and don't you _dare_ tell me Hau is funnier or sweeter or that I'm seeing things. I'm _not_."

"In all fairness, Hau is much sweeter than–"

"Of course he is. He's the sweetest dude in this Realm, are you kidding me?" Moon hops a little to turn to Lillie, staring at her very thoroughly, but also playfully. "Is that a blush I see there?"

"N-No, I'm just… very cold." Oh, what a terrible lie. Lillie is equal parts naïve and cunning, but she doesn't shine for her abilities to make things up; that's one of the inherently good things about her that draw people in. "Hau is indeed a lovely person. Of course I like him. And because he is so delightful, I smile around him a lot."

Moon's eyes sharpen. "Your smile," a pause. Moon scrolls the tap of her bottle, "it's different when you're with him."

"I, uh– I don't believe that's a thing."

"Whenever I catch you holding hands, you look… I don't know how to say it. You look softer. Happier. He makes you super happy– and he makes me and Gladion happy, too, but it's not the same type of happiness. It's a sappy kind of happy." Lillie flushes bright red at the ears, but Moon is luckily paying attention to the levels of water in her bottle; unsatisfied, she unscrews the tap and ducks it under the stream. "I have never seen people all lovey-dovey like that, so you could say I have a keen eye for that."

Lillie chuckles. She endearingly observes her friend; oh, her so stunted friend, holding a constant umbrella over her raining emotions and taking a nap until those emotions awaken within her. Lillie is aware that Moon is a fidgety person, constantly twitching and reacting erratically whenever something she can't control or that she doesn't know occurs around or _within_ her. She knows Moon has been observing her for the last weeks very closely.

She had always thought Moon was in the lookout to learn about emotions, maybe inspired by the many romance books that Lillie had recommended to her. _Never_ would she have expected for Moon to notice all of this in such detail.

"It's fascinating for somebody as… blatantly ignorant to romance be so observant about the matter." Lillie huffs a fond chuckle. Some of it puffs in a cloud of white past her lips. "Gladion once commented that you have absolutely no interest in matters as trivial as these."

"I'm still completely over the whole charade. I don't get the appeal, y'know." Moon grabs Lillie's bottle from her side and switches it with hers. "Everyone is all like 'oh it's so romantic', 'oh it makes you so happy', 'oh I can't live without this person' and all that stuff. It sounds rotten to me."

"Relationships sound rotten to you?"

"No, I mean that sort of… I guess love." Moon hesitates as she speaks, frowning at the problem of not finding the right words. "Having important people in your life is, uh, _important_ , but the concept of owing your life to somebody and getting all blushy and sweaty over somebody just sounds ridiculous to me."

The silence that washes over them is absolute; but then, Lillie begins to laugh. It's not mean. If anything, it's kind and understanding.

"That's because you haven't experienced it yet," says the blonde. The bottle in Moon's hand almost falls. "I suppose you're this oblivious because you have only read about it. Reading about love isn't the same as… experiencing it."

Moon chuckles. "You grew up reading fairy tales and love stories behind Lusamine's back." She raises a finger before Lillie can get a word in. " _And_ had a penpal that was head over heels for you. And that you made drawings of when you were _that_ little."

" _Moon_!" The assassin laughs. The Empress flushes a deep red. "You told me you would never mention it again!"

"The fact that it makes you blush so much is the best part," comments she, taking Lillie's bottle out of the stream. "Let's stay here for a little more. The boys can wait for a little more."

Lillie nods in agreement; Moon sits down by the stream, kicking her legs back and forth as she looks over the forest. There is no snow and no signs of frost like there had been in Gemstone Village, but that's a given considering how close to the Soakedge Strait they are. It makes her feel a bit lonelier, even though Lillie is right by her side. The world has taught her not to count her blessings, to always be alert in case some breeze, for example, kicks Lillie into the pond and gives her mortal pneumonia.

That might be a bit of a stretch; Moon simply has never learned how to stay idle and wait for things to happen. Normally, she has to go get everything herself. If she hasn't discovered something, it's because she hasn't gotten there yet; if it's not about getting there, then maybe it simply doesn't exist; if it _does_ exist, then it's not meant to be for her. All she knows about romance and emotions, the strong ones, is all she's read in Lillie's books.

"What does it feel like?"

Lillie turns to Moon. "What, exactly?"

"Love," Moon says, wistful, looking up at the sky. "All that romantic stuff. What does it feel like for you?"

She nearly wants to tell Moon that she should quit insisting that she has a thing with Hau, but something in Moon's eyes shuts her mouth. While not distant per se, or forlorn, Moon is decisively serious. She stares at her like what Lillie has to say holds the world's worth for her.

Moon isn't interested in this. Maybe she will _never_ be. But she's interested enough to ask Lillie about it. She's interested to know what it is like for _her_.

"It's complicated," says Lillie, sighing. "You just… look at one person and you one day realize that they are the _one_."

"The _one_?"

"Yes, like it's meant to be. Maybe not that instantly. It doesn't take just one look, it takes a while, but… it's like a _click_. It just feels right to be with that person. Your heart beats super fast, you feel all jittery and nervous but also _super_ happy. And you want to spend more time with them. And support them."

Moon arches an eyebrow. "I also support my friends, though. And I'm not in love with any of them."

"It's… different in a way I still don't understand myself. You just feel it. It's not something you can tell right away like a fever. It drives you insane but in a good way, I suppose. You want to be better for them. You want to be with them but… _closer_ , you know?" Moon's expression is blank with cluelessness. Lillie covers her face. "Arceus, I must sound so childish right now. Mother always told me to not talk about these things because–"

A gentle hand on her shoulder. A kind sigh. Lillie peeks at Moon from behind her fingers and finds her to be shaking her head. "I'm _not_ Lusamine, Lils. I'm not gonna tell you to stop gushing because you are _that_ happy. I can tell you're speaking from personal experience."

After spending quite a while with Lillie, Moon had learned to differentiate a few patterns in Lillie's behavior that are both victim and a perfect cast of Lusamine; Lillie is a soft-spoken person, and whenever she dwells into matters this mundane but vulnerable, she usually cowers.

Her inhibitions would only disappear whenever she was in a bad situation, maybe after a nightmare. She had had a few of those while Lusamine had still been in charge and Moon had been keeping watch at her window. The few days Moon knew she wouldn't be needed at the Springblossom Academy, she would stay the night at Lillie's place to either read or simply keep her company.

This, however, seems like a window letting the sunshine in, finally. "You don't think it's… inadequate?"

"It's inadequately sappy," Moon says with a grin. It's so innocent it can't physically offend Lillie. "You look very cute when you're with Hau. And very happy. I rarely saw you smile that much when you were in the palace, studying. I welcome the change."

Moon sees Lillie swallow. "I… see. That is certainly reassuring to hear." Her green eyes soften, shoulders sagging a smidge. "I rarely got to talk about these things with anyone; oh, maybe Hau. Gladion doesn't seem to be that keen in emotions. You two are very alike in that regard."

The other _refuses_ to let that comparison linger in the conversation and shakes her head dismissively. "You're avoiding the conversation, ma'am. I think I asked you what love was for you."

Lillie's expression flickers with mischief, all soft and silky in her angelic expression. Such misbehavior has no right to be as delicate as it is on her. "Why is it that you are so interested?"

"Curiosity," she replies, almost too quickly.

"Good to hear." Lillie crosses her legs. Her tights have a small rip on her knee. "I, um, don't remember where I was in my rant, but I suppose you could sum it up by saying it's… _affection_. It doesn't have to be inherently sexual, but it always entails a high degree of affection. You have read the same books I have on that matter, you _know_ what the clichés are."

"Clichés don't define a genre– we had this conversation already!"

"Yes, but it can create a very standardized picture of what the true deal is!" Lillie argues, and Moon has absolutely nothing to add about that. "The hand-holding, the naps together, the hugs, the kisses, all of that stuff!" Moon says nothing but Lillie begins to blush scarlet red anyway. "Not like a fantasized about that in any way! I… ah, I simply read a lot about these things. They sound truly cute, right?"

Moon's eyes stay stuck on her green ones for a short minute.

Then, she smirks. "So you _do_ have a thing for Hau."

She swears Lillie's ears _steam_ at that point, and the other laughs at the sight. Lillie is just as composed as her mother, calm and collected, adding some moderate spice of intelligence that Gladion had truly inherited from them, as well. Seeing her blush like this is rare. Moon wonders what _Gladion_ would look like if he flushed this red.

Hm.

"I– I– that's not the topic we are in!" yelps Lillie. "We are trying to help you out!"

"Oh, Lils," Moon chuckles, finally standing up. Her legs are mildly numb after sitting down for this long. She pats her shoulder. "Trust me, I understand a lot more than you give me credit for."

Lillie and Moon head back to their picnic site after that. They had separated from the group to get water, and they might have very little of it and they might have taken _way_ too long, but that should be about enough.

The blanket is laid on a field of grass, close to a few windmills that move the opposing wind away from them. Gladion has made sure there is a little fire to stave off the cold temperatures. The Jaguar Farmlands might be pleasant in their weather compared to the placid winter zone that was Gemstone Village, but it's still kind of chilly. He doesn't want to risk catching a cold just because Moon had the odd idea of having a picnic outside. In the middle of the winter.

Hau waves at them from the distance. Gladion, who had been reading a book, puts it away as soon as the girls come into view.

"There you two are!" exclaims Hau as Lillie and Moon jog back to the blanket. Moon almost barrels to a sitting position. "We were wonderin' if that little spring had swallowed you whole!"

Moon looks at Gladion with a smirk. "Wishful thinking?"

He imitates the gesture. "You could call it that. Nobody in their right mind would have a picnic with this weather."

"It's a very nice day outside, though," comments Lillie, looking up with a gentle smile. "The sun might not be very warm, but this place does look beautiful. I'm not very cold, anyway."

Hau, though, is another story. The three warriors might be fine with cold temperatures – Moon is fine with anything and everything, much to Gladion's amusement and sometimes irritation – but he knows Hau can't stand the cold that well. However, he also knows that the sorcerer is a little of a furnace, and his temperature, as Lillie had mentioned a few times as not-so-joking-jokes, is amazingly warm no matter the weather.

He's still complaining, though. "I don't get it. How do you guys deal with this weather so well? The heat is so great!"

Moon and Gladion grimace in disgust and dread respectively. Lillie giggles. "It's nice to have a little bit of cold sometimes. I do agree that it's a rather... uncanny place and time to do a picnic in."

Cackling to herself like the rascal she is, she leans back to lie down, sighing as she goes. "I didn't tell you all about this because you would have said no, but I when I went to visit Guzma for this business we got goin' on–"

"Which you still have to tell us about," interjects Gladion.

"– his mom told me that there's gonna be a star shower tonight!" Moon grins brilliantly, turning her head to look specifically at Gladion. "Not so prissy anymore, are we, Gladbag? I told you it was gonna be worth it!"

Hadn't it been for the fact that she had previously prefaced it by saying she just wants to get Hau and Lillie together, her statement would have much more value and truth to doesn't think her idea is bad, though; in fact, he finds himself highly pleased with that turn of events.

Ludwig Town, as humble and poor as it is, has too much illumination. He has always thought that villagers believed lights to be a sign of wealth, thus why they had so many of them around town. The light pollution _never_ allowed for many stars to be seen unless it was summer and it was four in the morning; an hour that Gladion can barely get to awake.

Luckily for him, his ability to stay up for longer has improved, but it's not something he can put to use now. He's ashamed to admit his relentless nights of studying have helped a lot in that department.

Lillie is delighted by the news. "I have never seen a star shower! Will we be able to watch it from here?"

"Yeah, totally!" affirms Moon, throwing her hands up in celebration. "The whole Kandrus Empire throws festivals around this season because of the star showers! We'll probably stumble with a few of them, that's for sure." She taps her finger under her lower lip. "I think Altaria Bay is gonna hold one of those. We should get dresses somewhere for that."

"I doubt you're gonna find a decent stylist here, so we should look somewhere else. I'm totally on board with that!" says Hau cheerfully, rubbing his palms together with a grin. "Where could we go, then?"

She snickers. "Would you guys kill, slaughter or behead me if I said we go to Reikyuu?"

"Considering they might do all those things to you the second you step into the city, we won't need to bother," states Gladion humorously, rolling his eyes. "You can't stay safe for just one trip, can you?"

"Moon, Wicke told us to stay out of trouble!" insists Lillie, twisting her lips in complaint.

"Oh, _no_ , you guys don't get it," Moon says, sitting up quickly to gesture to herself, then the rest. "They know me there. They know me super well. You could say we're almost friends at this point." They aren't, but Gladion appreciates her attempt to smoothen the surface. "They know they can't hurt me because I'll hurt them too. We're kinda untouchable. And we have the Empress with us."

"And what are we gonna do with that, though? We can't just force them to let us through just because we have an important politician with us," reasons Hau, much to Gladion's delight. "And it's not like they're gonna bat an eye, either. She's the Empress of the enemy Empire, too."

"Ah, I'll figure something out! But it's the closest city and where we'll find the best dresses, and we gotta get nice and pretty for the festival!" Moon winks an eye at Lillie, who is wiggling ever so slightly to suppress her emotion. "Don't you agree, Lils?"

"I hate to say this, big brother, but… it would be delightful, indeed." Gladion groans under his breath and throws himself back. "Come on, don't be so grumpy! I have never gone shopping, I'm sure it will be marvelous!"

Hau gives her an uncomfortable glance. "Lillie, this is… probably not gonna surprise you, but Moon ain't exactly _legal_ when it comes to this stuff– don't look at me like that, you know I'm right!"

"You're not! You guys got money and all that now but I didn't back then!"

"Oh, _really_ ," states Gladion dryly. "I can vividly recall you attacking a poor vendor because we needed costumes to get past Reikyuu's security."

"We were in a hurry!"

" _And you had money_."

"We couldn't be caught, so I had to be sneaky! You guys should be thankful I handled the job on my own and only my hands got dirty," she shakes her head, dismissing his point, and throws herself to the blanket with a blissful smile. "That was a great day. I had so much fun."

"Man, only you would say beating the shit out of a poor man–"

She makes a face. "His prices were almost _extortion_."

"Again, only you'd say that's fun." Lillie giggles, but a very palpable nervousness can be appreciated in her laughter. Hau picks this up immediately. "If you use your puppy eyes, maybe you can convince Moon to not get into trouble. She's a softie for ya'."

Moon grumbles something along the lines of 'I'm not' but everyone overlooks that lie. Gladion soberly chuckles. "Not even such a powerful weapon will win against her."

Gladion had never thought Lillie to be this competitive or easy to fire up, but maybe they _are_ siblings in more ways than one; Lillie decisively huffs and crawls over to Moon's side, who blinks in surprise to see Lillie – and a second later, Hau too – looking over her. They peer into her eyes with the vastness of the universe, all of it concentrated in soft green eyes like pastures and dark eyes like those of chocolate.

It's a weird mix. Moon can feel herself getting pulled into Lillie's widening eyes, and she tries to scoot away from the strange phenomenon. A hand – Hau's – grabs her arm and keeps her in place.

" _What the fuck_ ," Moon whispers softly.

"If we go shopping," Lillie whispers as well, making sure to flutter her eyelashes up and down like the wings of a butterfly. "Then you will promise to behave."

The assassin tries to wiggle. Hau's hand twitches to keep her anchored. "What if some guard tries to attack us?"

"We will talk them into being nice."

That's impossible. That's the most naïve and brainless idea conceived in history. Thankfully, Moon has no inhibitions to call this out. "That has never happened in the history of mankind, and neither will it happen _now_."

"I have my ways," she teases. Moon is squirming, looking for a way out of this softcore brainwashing. "But you will behave. We will buy the dresses as normal people do," Moon _winces_ , as though she's been burnt. Lillie chuckles. "We will _pay_ as much as we need. And you will _not_ complain about this."

Gladion isn't paying attention to any of this, lying down like he's the coolest, but he has the audacity to _snicker_ and if she's getting a share of torture, so is he.

Moon grins a terrifying width. "Did you know Gladbag is ticklish?"

 _What_.

Gladion immediately sits up. "What are you talking about? That's not true."

Moon waggles her eyebrows at Lillie, whose eyes are flickering in confusion. "It _is_. He's super ticklish. If you poke his side, he'll start shaking like a fish fresh outta the water. It's _amazing_."

Hau's hand falters. He looks at Lillie, seeking guidance. "If that's true, we could…"

He lets the sentence hang unfinished; to Gladion's terror, she understands the hidden meaning and nods. "Yes. We could. We _definitely_ could."

In a second, all hands are off from Moon and the topic is quickly forgotten in favor of Gladion's apparently hidden trait– but it's not true, he's not ticklish. He's tried to brush his fingers against his own sides and nothing ever happened. Faba had many times mentioned that humans can make themselves laugh – ' _You laugh when you read a book, correct? You also laugh when you carry out a task to utmost success, correct?_ ' – so he doesn't believe himself to be ticklish.

Nobody has tickled him anyway, so he should be fine.

But when Hau pins his arms down and Lillie moves into position, followed by Moon as she looms like a hyena surveying its prey, he's unabashedly _terrified_. Her grin is all teeth and lack of mercy. She's said many times that she likes to execute criminals with a smile to send them off properly – he wonders if his perspective is similar to that of her victims.

Lillie's eyes turn into a sneer. "Moon just said you happen to be ticklish."

"I'm not," he deadpans. "She's trying to distract you from–"

"From unimportant matters that are but a small issue compared to your ticklish spots," Moon's voice is artificially candid. Gladion decides he loathes the mere sound of it. "You're gonna love this."

"This– whatever _this_ is, is going to end up in bloodshed."

"Aw, you're such a romantic gentleman, Gladbag," Moon grins, peering over him with a flattening smile that still manages to look sadistic. "We're still gonna do this. This is something you gotta experience once in your life."

"How is tickling me until I probably have an aneurysm a life-time experience?"

Lillie huffs a laugh. Hau chuckles. Moon's eyes crinkle. "Your sister wants to tickle you and if you don't let her I'm gonna headbutt you six feet into the ground, got it?"

"This is not how–"

And Lillie's finger's wiggle, wiggle, and wiggle and Gladion tries to hold it in, the laughter, the toe-curling butterflies sparking from his sides, but then Moon dares scratch under his chin and that's when the dam breaks. Lillie is _relentless_ ; she attacks all spots she knows most people are ticklish at, and Moon is just as tactless and mean as her. Gladion hysterically tries to wiggle away from them, shaking and releasing laughter that might as well be screams for help, all of it rimmed with painful delight.

"He's loving it!" Hau yells, grinning and having the time of his life; much like Gladion. "Keep on going, we gotta make him _cry_!"

Gladion can barely hear Hau over his screaming and laughter and pleas to stop, but they are all too wobbly to have any meaning. He throws his head back and forth, his feet kicking under Moon's legs – but he notices that her hands have shifted, along with his guffawing lungs, and that she's staring at him from above with a very foreign look but it's okay, because she looks happy, _pleased, and that makes him happy too–_

The music within his mind and at the tip of their fingers – a lousy, fun, vibrant and bubbly staccato – begins to die down as everything and everyone retreats. When he wills himself to open his eyes, he finds them to be blurry with tears, and his chest is heavy with pants and tension, but he feels lighter than air.

And he notices that Lillie and Hau are laughing, too. "Dude, I never thought you could laugh like that– I have never seen ya' laugh, I think."

"It is indeed a very rare noise," Lillie huffs, body trembling with the last embers of laughter. "It's a very pleasing sound, though– wouldn't you agree, Moon?"

The blonde is looking at her with a smile, crooked at the side. Moon nods.

"Mhm," Moon gives him a sincere, private smile. "You're right, Lils. Wouldn't be bad for the grumpy edgelord to get tickled if it'll reel out laughter as obnoxious as that."

Gladion instantly tackles her to the blanket to give her long-overdue payback, but Hau and Lillie entangle them from each other before a brawl can ensue, and decide that it's about time they have lunch.

The day passes very quickly amidst jokes, laughter, and Hau nearly choking when Moon presents him with an artisan malasada she had bought that same morning. The sun sinks over the horizon as the hours pass; Lillie and Gladion leave the other two to go pick flowers, and when Moon and Hau wake up, Lillie is putting a crown of daisies on Moon's head.

She's surprised by the gift, and while she claims it's sappy and childish, she keeps it on through sunset and night. Hau keeps it on too, much more touched than Moon considering Lillie had seemingly had this touching gesture, a blush adorning his cheeks, about to blabber an expression of gratitude–

Gladion crouches by his side. "I made that for you. You're welcome."

Hau's expression of confusion and surprise is so raw, Moon swears she might die laughing.

That night, flower crowns on and stomachs full, they lay down on the blanket to watch the stars. The Jaguar Farmlands have little to no illumination throughout the fields, which makes for an excellent session of stargazing. The night has turned cold over the passing of hours, and Gladion ends up offering his fluffy cape to Lillie and Moon. They still look small on it, even if they're sitting and using it as a blanket. Not even two people can fill that thing in. Gladion finds it absolutely fascinating.

Lillie points to the sky. "Look! I think I saw one!" She beams.

Moon nods with a pleasant smile. "I think that was a shooting star, yeah. It went away so quick, though," she sighs. She tugs the fur of the cape further against her neck. "What a bummer. I always thought they'd be a little slower."

Smirking, he turns from the sky to her. "If you expect the stars to stop and stare, you're delusional." Moon reaches from under the cloak to hit his arm, and he lets her try, amused. "I guess none of us have ever gone stargazing like this, huh? That's interesting."

"I have!" beams Hau to their right. He's sitting pretty close to Lillie. Gladion has the suspicion they might be holding hands, and it's a shame he can't ask Moon now. "I used to sleep in the forest a _lot_ , so I had a dope view of the sky. No lights and all that."

Lillie gasps. "That sounds so scary! Didn't anybody ever attack you?"

"I don't think so. It's always been pretty tame in the forests of the Kandrus Dominion, other than a few wolves here and there. That could get nasty," comments Hau, smiling all the while. He makes it all sound _that_ simple. Gladion wishes things could be that simple, or if he _could_ make them that simple. "And Moon and Gladbag have done it a lot of times! It ain't like it's _my_ thing."

Lillie furrows her brow at Moon, who sits at her immediate closest. Moon shrugs at her accusing glare, smiling teasingly. "We were broke by then. Did you think we slept in super luxurious hotels and cozy cabins while we were gone?"

And the blaming vibes melt. "Uh, I suppose not. It's hard to think about." Lillie aims her eyes to the starlit sky again. The stars dot her green eyes like kind gems twinkling in the darkness of the night. "I never thought you guys would be having such a bad time when I sent you to retrieve the Talismans, or when Mother sent you to the Emissary's Factory. It's very hard to see these things from within the palace."

Hau puts a hand on her shoulder, sensing her mood plummeting. "It's not as bad as it seems! You get used to it, trust me." Gladion thinks Hau might be the only person on this Realm that can pull the _trust me_ card and get away with it. "It's kinda like a sleepover, but outside! We've slept in the forest a few times now, so you kinda get the fun, right?"

Lillie nods gently. "Yes, I understand what you mean. It was… fairly pleasant." Her eyes close wistfully, feeling the winter breeze of the fields play with her hair. She snuggles against Moon, deeper into the cape. "I always felt sheltered in the palace, safe. It never crossed my mind that there could be a world outside until Moon came by and she told me about all she's seen. But now I know– now I can _see_ it. It's so much more different than what I had expected."

"How, though?" asks Moon. "Because Lusamine made a pretty good job of telling you only the bad stuff."

Lillie sighs– not in exasperation, but fondness. "That predisposed me to certain reluctance, indeed, but… It's so much better than I could have ever imagined. It might be because I'm with you three that I'm this happy, this safe. The world is so big and I sometimes feel small– but being with you, I don't feel that way as much."

Gladion smiles at her – a true, genuine smile– and scoots a little closer. "Everyone feels small sometimes. It's perfectly normal."

He sees Moon is about to argue with him to get a rise out of him, but she closes her mouth and nods. Now is not the time for petty banter, and he appreciates her self-control.

"I know. And I don't mind the feeling. I know I will grow out of it," Lillie says in a small but confident voice. "When I lived in the palace, I was expected to be the perfect little lady for Mother. A great Princess, a future Empress. Mother never let me out of those walls no matter how much I fought her, and I wasn't allowed to look outside, to look at the sky and think about what I want; but I can do that now."

Moon swings an arm around Lillie's shoulders, whose head falls on her friend's shoulder. "You're not gonna stay in there like a caged bird anymore. You can do anything you want. The world is kinda big and menacing, but when you get used to it, it's super pretty, isn't it?"

A nod. "I think I understand what you meant all those times you told me you wanted to travel far beyond the horizon and far up the stars– it's about, uh, all of this, right?" Lillie asks, shifting her head to look at Moon from her shoulder. "It's about finding a bit of yourself. And seeing what is out there."

"Yeah, because nobody can feel it for you," Gladion takes the liberty to say. "If I hadn't left my four walls back at Ludwig Town, I wouldn't have met the people I have now. It's a bit scary but… I guess it's worth it."

From behind Lillie to her side, Hau smiles – he lets out a small touched ' _dude_ ' – and Gladion is sure Moon is smiling as well, if the little sigh she lets out proves otherwise. Lillie gives him a tiny bouncy nod. "I always thought it would be about fighting bad people and getting hurt. And that if I took a step out of the palace, I would be hurt because of my status. Because I couldn't defend myself."

"Well, we're here with ya' now, ain't we?" asks Hau, tilting his head in askance. "And it's not that bad, right?"

Lillie shakes her head. "No, it… it isn't." Her voice quivers at the end– a pre-crying sign that Gladion can hear, and Moon instantly wraps another arm around Lillie's shaking form. "It's so– so much fun, being with you guys like this."

Moon and Hau embrace Lillie as she weeps on Moon's shoulder, not because she's sad, but because she's _relieved_. Gladion can't imagine what it must feel like to be jailed in a palace, to be told that she should be thankful she's got all she has, but to simply want to taste the sun and breathe the world in– and he can't imagine how overwhelming it must be to realize that you're finally free, that there is absolutely nothing stopping him.

He's glad Hau is with Lillie. He's glad that Lillie is this happy. He's glad Moon has told her all the adventures she's gone through, that she has cheered Lillie on all this while.

Gladion gets up to join the hug, as well, solemnly embracing Lillie as she mutters small ' _thank you'_ s and ' _I'm sorry_ 's. Then, when she claims she has calmed down and the conversation flutters back into peace and nothingness, just routinary chatter and peaceful nothings, they look up at the sky to watch the star shower in full glory.

The group gradually lies down. Moon and Lillie observe the show from under Gladion's cape, with the blonde curled to a side. Over time, Gladion becomes aware that Lillie has managed to fall asleep, and that Hau has too. The lack of overjoyed chatting and lovesick exchanges makes it evident; and that leaves Moon and him alone under the shooting stars.

Well, turns out it's only _him_ because when he turns his attention from the stars to Moon, he finds her to be sleeping too.

It's a strange notion, seeing Moon sleeping. Even after all these months of travelling, her restless behavior always makes it seem like she needs no sleep at all to survive; and look at her now, cheek on the grass and his cape swallowing her whole, as though she's small under the blanket of stars and the moonlight.

His eyes stay fixated in her for a minute more than necessary. There's hair all over her face. He takes the liberty of pulling it away from her face with the back of his hand, pulling it over her neck. Her nose is digging on the blanket she's curled under her hand, body shifting up, down, up, down.

Gladion has always known Moon is… attractive, cute, but always as a fleeting impression, a mere observation that is devoid of meaning.

He always thought she would stay with that etiquette forever. Tonight, however, and probably since the first time they met, she looks… different. It might be the starlight, coating her hair and skin in ethereal blues and whites. It could be the way she doesn't look as _fleetingly_ cute and she looks much more vast, beautiful and deep than ever.

He's always known for her to be infinite and enormous. He's always known her to be one step ahead of time and space. She's impossible. She's a powerhouse of bad intentions and unpredictable spontaneity. He knows her better than she probably knows herself, and knows her to be brazen, stubborn, impulsive, a tidbit arrogant, kind, understanding, a good friend.

He has great friends. She's a great friend. An amazing, stubborn, stomach-lurching friend that can make him feel things he's never felt before.

"Gladbag…" she mutters into the blanket and the fur, brow knitting softly. "Give 'em back… greedy bastard…"

He should lend her his cape more often.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DID YOU SEE MOON AND LILLIE'S INTERACTIONS? LILLIE IS GROWING SO MUCH. SHE'S GETTING HEALTHY. SHE HAS A CRUSH ON HAU EVEN IF SHE'S SO OBLIVIOUS AND MOON'S FEELINGS ON LOVE don't worry she's discovering herself it won't take THAT long for things to Change For The Better GVHJHDNJSK
> 
> and THE SQUAD MAKING GLADION LAUGH. AND THEM WATCHING THE STARS AND CONSOLING LILLIE. AND GLADION FEELING AFFECTIONATE FOR MOON HNNNNG THIS SUMS THE SQUAD UP SO WELL I CAN'T WITH HOW MUCH THEY'VE GROWIN I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE
> 
> "And had a penpal that was head over heels for you. And that you made drawings of when you were that little." / "Moon!" The assassin laughs. The Empress flushes a deep red. "You told me you would never mention it again!" - I LOVE THIS SISTERHOOD SYNERGY
> 
> "Arceus, I must sound so childish right now. Mother always told me to not talk about these things because–" / A gentle hand on her shoulder. A kind sigh. Lillie peeks at Moon from behind her fingers and finds her to be shaking her head." - this exchange is So Important. Lillie and Lusamine's stuff has been swept under the rug because I didn't want this fic to be 100 chapters long you see. even if that would have been epic. but this is fine and we're letting Lillie get comfy with her freedom with HEALTHY SISTER SUPPORT AND A SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT
> 
> "Why is it that you are so interested?" / "Curiosity," she replies, almost too quickly." - If Moon replies to something quickly, :)
> 
> "Would you guys kill, slaughter or behead me if I said we go to Reikyuu?" / "Considering they might do all those things to you the second you step into the city, we won't need to bother," states Gladion humorously, rolling his eyes. "You can't stay safe for just one trip, can you?" / "Moon, Wicke told us to stay out of trouble!" - I love them so much. Moon is such a certified dumbass and next chapter is gonna be FUN
> 
> "He takes the liberty of pulling it away from her face with the back of his hand, pulling it over her neck. Her nose is digging on the blanket she's curled under her hand, body shifting up, down, up, down." - GOD HE'S PINING SO HARD FOR THIS WOMAN
> 
> "Gladion has always known Moon is… attractive, cute, but always as a fleeting impression, a mere observation that is devoid of meaning. / He always thought she would stay with that etiquette forever. Tonight, however, and probably since the first time they met, she looks… different. It might be the starlight, coating her hair and skin in ethereal blues and whites. It could be the way she doesn't look as fleetingly cute and she looks much more vast, beautiful and deep than ever." - Friendly reminder that Gladion never saw Moon as anything but problematic, then in arc 2 he kinda saw the cuteness and look at us now. LOOK AT US NOW.
> 
> next chapter we're traveling to a Place Where Moon is Wanted Dead and We're Gonna do Some Fun Random Shit
> 
> and maybe some Lowkey Romantic Shit
> 
> because yours truly went bananas with this arc and god wasn't it fun. so next chapter is gonna be FUN AS HELL AND IT'S GONNA BE GREAT SEE YA /WOOSH


	7. Back to Basics

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moon drags everyone back to her old ways of survival in none other place than Reikyuu. Chaos ensues.

The first thing Moon does when they reach Reikyuu is hand Lillie a blindfold.

"Get dressed up," orders Moon, grinning. "We're gonna brainwash a seller."

This, thinks Gladion bitterly, is not how he had envisioned spending his first day in Reikyuu. He had expected some rough corners and a little bit of trouble, no doubt caused by Moon's intolerance to the Kandrus guards and vice versa. Maybe they would get into a trap, maybe they'd walk into some beasts of the desert.

But he had never expected Moon to coax Lillie into acting as a hostage victim– never in a hundred years.

Reikyuu is hot and bothersome on the skin, but the weather is mildly more pleasant than it had once been. Gladion's relationship with Reikyuu is not as… _close_ as whatever Moon has with this place, but they always manage to get into trouble one way or another. Arceus forbid Moon stays out of trouble for one single day in this city; she always has to make a mess out of everything and anything she touches.

At least Lillie isn't as offended as she is curious. "What do you mean?"

"Dude, what are you plannin' now?" asks Hau, eyeing Moon's backpack. She had many times claimed that she likes traveling light, but her bag has grown suspiciously bulky over the prior day and the present. "Are you gonna mug someone? _Did_ you mug someone outta' their money?"

In Hau's defense, that's a perfectly reasonable question to make. She grins brighter. "Don't be silly, we're not gonna steal any money!"

And they are allowed to breathe out in relief, to think that Moon is just bringing up a gimmick for fun.

But then, she pulls up a big, huge, torn oversized shirt over her head, and ties a bandana over her mouth. The shirt has short sleeves but they reach her elbows. She looks _ridiculous_. "We're gonna get Lils a dress. If I need to dress as a pirate gangster to get Lillie a dress, I'm gonna do it."

"What's with that outfit, then?" Gladion skeptically walks up to her, grabbing the oversized sleeve. It hangs from her shoulder. "You look like you are about to sneak into an underground drug ring."

Moon gently puts his hand away from her clothes. "I took these from Guzma, actually– well, I took them from his mom's laundry basket. I thought I'd need a good cover if we ever got here, which we have, so I gotta disguise both Lils and _myself_." Gladion, Hau and Lillie's eyes grow equally round. "Did you think we were gonna do things the right way? We're in Reikyuu. Nobody _ever_ does things the right way, so we're gonna follow that lovely custom and get Lils a dress."

It takes Gladion two full seconds to understand what she could be up to. He already hates it. "You don't want to steal money," he says slowly. "You want to steal a dress."

Moon holds up two fingers. " _Two_ dresses; one for her, and another for me. We could grab you two a pair of bow ties, too."

Lillie sighs. "Why would you want to steal from humble merchants? We should pay for the dresses! This is not fair!"

"Not gonna lie, I agree with you," it's Moon who says this, much to Gladion's delight, but she dismisses her own point with a shake of her head, "but this is a town full of _rats_. When I say _rats_ , I mean _rats_. They're all criminals here. Everyone steals from everyone, and I'd make a wild guess and say that the only person with money in there is the owner of the hotel."

"The hotel?"

Moon guides Lillie closer to Reikyuu's gates. "See that big, big elegant tower at the back? That's Reikyuu's Mirage. It's one of the fanciest hotels in the Kandrus Empire. The jewel of the Sandlands."

Gladion's brow knits. "They might be criminals– no, they _are_ criminals, that much we know, but–"

"How do you know about this?" asks Lillie innocently. She's still holding the blindfold in her hands. "Granted, this place certainly isn't… the prettiest, but I suppose not everyone here is bad, right?"

"This place is where, uh, that bad commander stayed. This is a pretty big place for Kandrus guards to stay, and all of them were linked in one way or another to the Blackring Company. Reikyuu is another nest for pirates and Ivoreed remains alike." Her theory might be only based on interpretation, but Gladion finds it to be plausible. "Those dresses were probably stolen in the first place, so nobody's gonna suffer other than the seller."

That makes a terrifying amount of sense as well. It's easy to judge Moon's crimes from the outside and deem her an airhead with an extensive criminal record, but it's not like what she did was completely wrong in terms of fairness– morality, though, is another story; and everyone knows Moon doesn't get along well with those dilemmas.

That might be why she's standing tall and proud before the gates of Reikyuu, thinking about her strategy. Hau sighs. "I mean, it's not like we got that much money on us, right? And Reikyuu's got a pretty good reputation for selling good clothes."

"We could also head back to Gemstone Village," says Lillie, evidently the only person aside from Gladion with more than one braincell. "They sell good things there too, right?"

"Yeah, but Gemstone Village is super expensive," reasons Hau, wincing. "Yeah, you could say that it doesn't matter 'cause we're gonna steal it, but that town is super friendly with us."

Lillie immediately swings her backpack over to her front, rummaging to look for her bag of coins. "I might have enough money!"

"Going to Gemstone Village is kinda counterproductive at this point, and we've come here for a reason," says Moon finally, smirking at her subject. Lillie is unfazed by this, curious. "We gotta teach Lillie how the real world works, and Reikyuu is as real as it's gonna get. As they say, when in jail, do as criminals do."

Gladion sighs. "That's not how the quote goes, and teaching Lillie how thieves work is not going to teach her anything valuable."

"She's not gonna steal anything, don't be ridiculous." Moon jabs him on the forehead with her finger. "She's gonna act as my candid hostage. And the seller is gonna give us the dresses one way or another. We're ladies in an emergency and we're willing to trade."

"All right, genius," Gladion deadpans, shaking his head. The _genius_ bit has no punch to it, making Moon snicker at him as she readjusts her bandana. "Let's say you manage to sneak into Reikyuu's market. Let's say everything goes brilliantly and nobody picks a fight at seeing a fellow merchant be threatened–"

"Which they won't," Moon says.

"– but who says they will give in to your threat anyway? Lillie is an Empress of the neighboring Empire, not this one."

Gladion is proud to say that has made her hesitate, but knowing how sagacious she is when it comes to action and crime, she will figure a way around it in no time. And, a minute later, she doesn't disappoint him.

"She's still a person of great power. It's not like the people of the Kandrus Empire don't know who Lusamine is, and she's her daughter. I'm sure it's gonna work just fine." Moon folds her arms, nodding to herself in approval. "Besides, I was told the higher-ups were kinda in cahoots with Lusamine, so they're gonna know who she is right away. Just trust me– it's gonna be heaps of fun!"

Gladion wants to refute that last bit, but he keeps his mouth shut with the conviction that the events to unfold will prove her – or anybody– wrong.

They proceed to plan their strategy, if it can even be called that. Hau asks Moon for a shirt of his own so he can join in the fun and blend with their improvised gang; much to Gladion's inner amusement, Moon has taken a few shirts from Guzma's mom, some of them with suspicious red stains that, of her own rapport, 'will make the whole thing much more badass'. Gladion begrudgingly joins too, asking for a bandana to cover his mouth and another to cover his hair and pin back his chopped bangs.

In the end, all of them are wearing black shirts with skulls and tears everywhere, Moon wearing the biggest and most ridiculous of them all. She's even put a chain over her neck and a pair of bracelets of cheap gold, and covers her mouth for good measure. Lillie, probably soothed by their appearances, puts the blindfold over her eyes and lets Moon take her around the vacant areas of Reikyuu.

And when the seller lies his eyes on them, he's _terrified_.

"What– What the _hell_?"

Moon gives Lillie a push. "Yo, loser! We got lil' Miss Goldilocks here and if you don't give us some nice dresses, we're gonna fuck both of you up, got it?"

" _Dresses_!? You only want–"

She slams the heel of her hand on the stand's board. She's got the theatrics of pirate life in check. "I don't have time for this, you heard me? We're gonna screw you up, baldy!" Making gestures with her hands, she beckons Hau and Gladion to walk over. Gladion can hear Lillie trying to hold in her laughter. "Show us the best dresses you got or the lil' lass is gonna _die_!"

"Who even is that poor girl? Why would you hurt a little girl like that!?" the seller, who can't seem to recognize Moon despite the obvious familiar pitch in her voice, squirms, and wobbles away from them.

Moon simply flicks the blindfold from Lillie's eyes. The seller grows even more scared, if possible. "That's– _That's_ –!"

"That's right, you loser!" Hau steps in, following Moon's steps while Gladion stands back, wondering how their nice trip ended like this. "We're gonna kill this girl if you don't give us the most expensive dresses you got, you hear us? We're gonna chop her to lil' Empress pieces!"

Moon very knowingly narrows her eyes and leans over the counter, managing to scare the poor salesman even more. "That's right, you geezer! We got the Empress and we're gonna stab her guts out if ya' don't hand all of those over to us! We got important biz' to take care of and we're in a hurry!"

"Who is sending you!?" the seller holds his hands up, but he doesn't hand in the requested item– if this could be even called a request. Moon is getting visibly impatient, drumming her fingers against the wooden surface. "You're from the Blackring, right!? Your clothes are filth–"

"Don't insult our badass style, loser! We aren't here to chit chat so start movin'! We got the Empress with us so you either _move_ and get outta our sight or you hand it over, you piece of shit!" Moon's eyes become small over the rag on her mouth. "Do ya' wanna see the Empress _die_ , eh?"

"No, of course, I–"

Moon slams her hand on the counter again. Gladion knows her anger is play-pretend but _holy shit_. "Then give us the damn dresses!" In a smooth move, Moon grabs Gladion's sword and holds it to Lillie's throat. "You got ten secs to hand all of 'em over!"

"We will have absolutely no mercy with your shop nor this girl with us," deadpans Gladion, trying to muster the same gravelly timbre to his voice. "Cooperate with us or you will suffer the consequences."

"Yeah!" Hau slams his shoe on the counter's edge. "I'm gonna kick your stand until it's on the floor, baldy! And we'll bury the lass under it!"

"F-Fine, _fine_! Please, don't hurt the Empress or my shop!" pleads the salesman, staggering to the back of his shop. "Do you want any dress in particular? I-I will give you whichever you want! For _free_!"

"That's what I'm talking about!" Moon skirts her eyes around the admittedly wide range of garments. Gladion never thought there could be so many dresses concentrated on a wall that small. Moon nudges Lillie softly. "Any picks?"

Lillie is withstanding the charade with moderate ease, humming with pursed lips. The salesman, shoulders deep into anxiety and fear, doesn't seem to notice the oddity of this exchange. "I like the blue one. The one at the top with the white ribbons."

And Moon falls into the play again. "You heard her, baldy! Give us the blue one right now or else I'm gonna kill you both!" Nodding, he hurries to unhang the dress from the wall. "Oh, grab the green one too, the one with the black stuff– yeah, that one. I'll do some stuff with it. Give us those other two as well– ah, the one on the top too. What fabric is it made of?"

"I-It's all cotton, Miss."

Moon once again slams her fist on the counter. "It's not a _blend_? That's _terrible–_ I'll take it anyway, so hand it over now!" At the back, Gladion pinches the bridge of his nose with two fingers. "Wrap it up in paper too– we're gonna take it far away from here so _don't ask any questions_!"

The merchant quickly puts the dresses in a box, folding them to fit snugly inside. Moon nods and angrily takes the packet away, tossing Lillie to her 'comrades' – that being a snickering Hau and a very tired Gladion – whilst glaring at the salesman as they take their leave, all to ensure he doesn't move an inch out of view.

"If you tell anybody we were here, we'll hunt you down and burn this place to a crisp!" Voice gravelly, she goes the extra step of lunging forward and slicing a pair of ugly dresses with Gladion's Silvally before the sword's owner can stop her. The seller screams at the action. "Got the message, eh?"

Gladion turns to her. "Commander Annoying, you just left damning evidence of our presence."

"Commander Obnoxious, shut up or you're next!" Lillie has to take a few guarded steps back to muffle her giggles. Moon looks at the salesman, hissing like a hyena. "Sow that together or else! And don't _fucking_ try to follow us! We'll kill our hostage and then you'll be next, got it!?"

"Yeah, got it!"

" _Good_!" exclaims Moon, pushing Lillie and her peers away, stalking away and out of view, very careful to avoid any people passing by with the box under her arm.

Moon carefully guides them to a spot she knows very well. Past the markets and into a few abandoned houses tasting the sunlight. Lillie is a giggling mess concealed very carefully between the warriors. Moon had made the wise decision to unwisely attack the vendor at the convenient time of lunch, which Gladion knows she's done before. Her having all of this so carefully laid out is terrifying in more ways than one.

When they get to the secret compartment within the string of houses, Lillie bursts out laughing. " _Arceus_ how did you manage to do that? I would have been incredibly scared if it had been an actual kidnapping!"

Moon and Hau step into the compartment behind the siblings and bump their fists, grinning. "And here I was, thinking you were a sweetheart. You got a real rebel among those malasada-filled insides."

Proud of himself, he points a thumb at his chest. "I ain't made of sugar, y'know! I'm a true pirate!"

The duo high-fives, laughing.

"Leave it to them to make these things look easy," chuckles Gladion, watching them talk. He grabs the box from Moon's hands as she shrugs off Guzma's shirt and unties the cumbersome bandana from her mouth. "What are you going to do with all these dresses, then? We should go back to the Jaguar Farmlands while the guards still haven't noticed us."

Moon _smirks_. That already looks bad on its own. "Who said we were done teaching Lillie the shenanigans of the wonderful world of crime and real life? This was just a pre-installment. A taste, if you will."

Lillie, very probably riding on the wave of adrenaline from earlier, scoots closer with interest. "What are you planning?"

Gladion's eyes grow stale. "I can't believe Moon has turned Lillie into a criminal."

"Don't be mean!" whispers Lillie, puffing her cheeks. "I'm curious, but that doesn't mean I condone Moon's ways in any way, shape or form; I'm merely interested in the ways of a past criminal like her."

Moon squints in confusion. "I've never been a criminal. Don't be dramatic–"

" _Please_ ," say Gladion and Hau at the same time, earning a roll of her eyes.

"Whatever, that's not the point," Moon says stubbornly. The smile is back on her face. "If you thought I'd only take you all here to grab dresses when we can't move out of the shadows without being noticed, you're _wrong_. I got big plans for us tonight and you're gonna sit still and listen. This is gonna be fun."

Her idea of fun has always been very foreign and strange, but he's known her for long enough to know she wouldn't risk their lives being taken over something petty. He's not sure if time has made his patience thicker or if she's proved herself to be trustworthy, but he's willing to believe this _might_ be fun.

Moon nods her head towards the hotel behind the walls. "We have dresses and we can probably get ourselves nice and pretty for the festival. I couldn't care less for fashion, really, I just wanted a dress for tonight."

"Tonight?" asks Hau finally. "What's happening tonight?"

Moon wordlessly turns to Lillie, who has taken the box and the dress out of the box. The assassin nods approvingly. "What do you think?"

"I actually like it very much… though I look a little bare. I don't know how casual this event at Altaria Bay will be, but I would appreciate something to go along with this dress."

It's as if she had known she would say _that._ She smirks. "The Mirage is gonna hold a party for the higher-ups of the military brass, as they always do, and they're gonna be selling this super pricey jewelry and–"

Gladion is quick to counter this idea. "No. We agreed we wouldn't be stealing–"

She walks over to Gladion and childishly puts a hand over his mouth. He's unsure of what made him submit to her will so quickly, be it the look in her eyes or the finger on her lips, but he waits it out patiently.

"The jewels aren't theirs," explains Moon. "I heard from the Blackring like, _ages_ ago, that they had stolen some fancy gems from the Ivoreed to kinda get back for all the human trafficking and stuff, and also make some money. The jewels got lost in a shipwreck and they have ended here now."

"And who do those jewels belong to? They aren't ours to take, either," says Gladion against her mouth, frowning sternly. "Maybe one of the bidders for the night is the actual owner. It's not in our right to take them to some event just because we simply _can_."

"We _can_ take them because the jewels belong to Lusamine, you simpleton."

The other three's eyes go wide in surprise. "Wait, they belong to _Mother_? How do you know that?"

Moon wordlessly hands them a brochure that she's been keeping in her pocket all along. Gladion reads the title with an increasingly indignant voice. " _The Jewels of The Fallen Aedus Royalty. Get to wear the necklace of the former glory Lusa–_ " The paper bends to a wrinkled ball under Gladion's anger-trembling fingers, "All right, this is bullshit."

"It totally is." Hau frowns, obviously upset that they are promoting such an event this shamelessly. "And I guess the Ivoreed stole the jewels from Lusamine to begin with, right? They're assholes!"

Moon nods. "Now you get my point, don't you? You're always doubting me!"

"You don't have the most reliable track record, either," says Gladion. He stops Moon's fist from colliding with his stomach with his hand. "So you simply want to step in and… grab the jewels?"

Moon wrangles her fist out of his grip. "As simple as that," she smiles cheekily, playful. "All we gotta do is get there before they start selling the jewels. This is gonna be good practice for Lillie. I fully intend her to go into the field and grab the jewels."

Hau tilts his head, doubtful. "Won't they, _uh_ , recognize her? That poor seller totally did."

Moon wordlessly holds up the dresses from the box and points her thumb at the chamber to their right, outside which Gladion can hear the distinctively still terrified voice of that innocent, poor vendor.

Gladion groans. He should have known better.

"Why, that's what the dresses _and_ that lonely vendor are for, my friend."

* * *

Gladion has never worn a tuxedo, and when Moon suggested getting a bow tie that morning, he never expected it would end like this, with him in a coat too thin for his shoulders and too thin on his arms. The bow tie nearly suffocates him when Moon tenderly – if her frantic tugs and _nearly_ affectionate laughing can be called that – puts it on his throat. Hau and Lillie make the ordeal seem more mellow, whispering compliments to each other right before Moon and Gladion's impassive eyes.

Moon clears her throat. The two lovebirds stop their chatting at once. "Leave some space for Arceus. We're gonna be late and we got a party to crash."

Gladion gives her a sardonic smile. "Why is it that whenever we are here we have something to crash?"

Moon looks at him, blank. "Are you calling me a criminal for about the umpteenth time today?"

"Did you even doubt it? Of course I am."

Moon elbows Gladion on the side with a pout, and he elbows her in response; Moon's body tilts to a side, and she flails her arms to recover her balance, unsteady on heels. Gladion quickly grabs her arm and stabilizes her, chastising her airheadedness under his breath.

Hau, smirking but always good-natured, coughs. "Leave some space for Arceus, you two."

" _Shut up_ ," they seethe simultaneously.

Reikyuu is packed with people at this hour. Lights are flaring from within the building like it's an actual party with drinks and youth, but Gladion knows it will all be dancing couples in a room and pretentious talks all around him. Luckily, he will stand back with Hau while the girls take care of things, much to his chagrin because _goddammit he kinda wants a dig in the fun too_.

He shouldn't be calling this _fun_ but taking family jewels back from people he no longer considers to be a serious threat does sound interesting. It would do a little collateral damage to his future image as possible Emperor, but he could sacrifice that to have a little fun.

The four march towards the Mirage immediately, only to see a very jarring detail that makes them stop halfway.

Gladion's throat dries quicker than water going down a drain.

Everyone is entering in couples. Everyone is dressed up. Everyone is happy, laughing, sharing little kisses and sometimes being let in, other times not. _Everyone is entering in couples how are they supposed to_ –

An arm securely loops around his. Warm skin, firm grip. Moon.

Gladion directs a pointed gaze of doubt at her. " _What exactly are you doing_?"

"Pretending, _darling_." The sugar drenching that last word makes him uncomfortable and for some reason very sick. It punches him in the stomach and he suddenly wants to groan. "Lils and Hau have adapted to the role just fine. I wish you had the same talent."

Indeed, Hau and Lillie are very comfortably holding each other's hand and saying sweet nothings to each other and it's _ridiculously sweet and tender and they're of course gonna get in because they look like a couple already_.

"Lillie looks _ridiculous_ with that red wig," Gladion comments. Beside him, Moon snorts. "They will never let her in if she's wearing something like that. They might pass as a couple, but she barely passes as an actual human being."

"You have also said that about _me_ and look at us now."

Gladion's expression sharpens. "I don't think you have still made your case any better. Your hair at least looks natural; hers, though–"

He's shut up instantly when the guard nods at Hau and Lillie pleasantly, not recognizing Hau with his dreadlocks pulled back like that nor Lillie under the bright red hair, and lets them in. Behind his back, the couple high-fives as they tread into the party.

"We're up next, _honey_ ," Moon whispers, smirking at him in the closest they have been to a _challenge_ lately. "I'm gonna put up the best act in my life."

And he's quick to defy her. "No, you won't."

"Watch me."

They walk up to the guard, who eyes them just like he would to any other couple, but Gladion still sweats bullets. They are treading too close into the wolf's mouth. With Moon's hair pulled up so nicely, he hopes she won't be recognized.

"Good evening, lovebirds. I suppose you're a couple, right?"

Moon smoothly pulls out a fan from her dress, pretending to hide a blush. " _Oui_ – I mean, yes, we are, aren't we, _darling_?"

Gladion's eyes widen a fraction. He had _not_ expected such detail to slip into her performance; the thick Kalosian accent, the swish-swish of her fan, the dignified stiffness of her posture making her look like somebody else entirely. Judging by the way she's looking at him from under the fan, playful, it had been planned to surprise him, too.

Gladion gives her arm a mischievous caress, visibly startling her. " _Oui, mon chéri_." Maybe calling her his _darling_ had been too far, but the shock in her face is worth every single bit of his dignity lost. He directs his eyes to the guard. "We apologize for… our linguistic mishaps. We come from very far. We have heard a superb bid will be held tonight, correct?"

"Yes, and hopefully you will enjoy it as well!" The guard nods towards the entrance. "Do come in. I hope you enjoy the night, too!"

Moon pretends to giggle and fans herself as they walk in, pretending to be elegant and poised until they lose sight of the guard behind them and she starts to cackle to herself in puffs of laughter. Her figure bends a little and the peaceful expression is wiped off her face immediately.

He has _so_ many questions to ask. "You know _Kalosian_?"

"What sort of traveler doesn't know Kalosian? I've been there hundreds of times!" Moon says, closing the fan and tapping her jaw with it. She winks at him. "A fair lady like me can't reveal all her cards right away, Gladbag. If anything, I didn't know you knew Kalosian."

"Faba wasn't exactly lenient in the language department," he grumbles, remembering the incessant afternoons spent with useless people calling themselves teachers, making him read books he could barely understand. His Kalosian isn't perfect, but he can speak it fluently. "You still went with that detail at the risk of me not knowing it?"

"I had a hunch a guy with that posh accent as yours would know some, or I was hoping for it, at least," she smirks. "Good to know you didn't disappoint me."

A beat of silence. Then, a fond sigh. "You're insane sometimes, you know."

Moon laughs merrily.

They waltz into the ballroom of the hotel, which Moon comments used to be its hall. They have agreed to meet at the entrance to spread gather intel, but Lillie and Hau are nowhere to be seen yet. It's all warm lights in a rather non-grandiose room, clicking steps as people dance to classical music – the kind that Gladion used to listen to while studying – but the infamous lovebirds are nowhere to be seen.

It's mimicking the grand galas in the palaces, the dreamy fairy tales and the lost kisses to a runaway princess. But in a place as small as this, the floor made of wood and windows letting the moonlight in, it barely reaches such extent.

"How are we supposed to do this, anyway?" asks Gladion, looking around. He's mildly aware that his arm is looped around Moon's still; he doesn't mind it as much as he'd like. "This place is crowded, and there's security _everywhere_."

The ballroom is surrounded by stairs that go all the way to the top floor, but both are guarded by two soldiers, each equally as blank-faced as white paper. Moon hums at the sight. "I can work that out. First, let's find Lillie and Hau. They might be dancing somewhere."

It takes them a few minutes to find Lillie and Hau in the crowd. Gladion had nearly expected them to have forgotten about the mission to go dancing, but that's not the case. Lillie is easier to spot in the crowd with that ridiculous wig; they are patiently waiting by a table full of drinks and food, of which Hau has taken a few bites. He has a malasada in one hand and a glass of wine in another, whereas Lillie simply holds herself steady and gasps when she sees Gladion and Moon approach them.

"We thought that you wouldn't make it in for a second. Thank goodness that wasn't the case," says Lillie, smiling in relief. "What should we do now?"

"We just got here, so we know as much as you do." Gladion looks around, constantly looking out for danger. Moon's hand reaches his arm to reassure him – or tell him to chill, he's not sure. "Any ideas?"

Hau swallows a mouthful of malasada to speak. "We reached the conclusion whatever they're gonna bid must be somewhere upstairs. It's super vigilated. There are no rooms around here and the stage is–" he points to his left, " _there_ , and nobody is guarding that place."

"So we thought that we need to get rid of the guards somehow. If possible, without making any noise, though I suppose the music would drown most of it." Gladion can already hear the cogs turning in Moon's head. "What do we do now?"

Moon makes a face and excuses herself. She holds Gladion's gaze for a second, meaningful, so he supposes she's about to do something they will regret– or, perhaps, she will succeed with flying colors.

Moon could probably incapacitate the soldiers, but that would create a ruckus they cannot afford. Lillie could speak her way to the staircase and reveal herself as the Empress, but that would cause an unnecessary fuss. Hau and Gladion could do the same as Moon, but causing less damage despite being less lethal than her.

She's back exactly three minutes later, readjusting the straps of her dress and walking to the drink table. Moon grabs two glasses and pours some wine in them. "Do you guys think soldiers are allowed to drink alcohol while on duty?"

"Probably not," replies Gladion, watching her hands as she pours the wine and maneuvers her way around the table.

"Okay. How professional do you guys think Kandrus soldiers are?"

Lillie's eyes widen. "Are you planning to intoxicate them?"

Much to Gladion's inner terror, she chuckles. "Not quite. I'll be right back."

Gladion watches Moon tread to the guards standing at the left staircase. She drives herself with a certain swing that makes her look _flirtatious_ , even. If Gladion can detect that vibe, then it must be something she's doing on purpose. She tells them something he can't quite hear from here, but it makes them smirk and step closer to her.

Gladion distractedly grabs a glass of wine from the table, observing her every move. He takes a sip.

"Do you like what you see, Gladbag?"

He nearly spits out the wine.

Lillie giggles, backhanding Hau's arm softly. "You almost gave him a heart attack! He loves calling us out but he _hates_ his laundry being aired like this."

Gladion wipes a little drop of wine off his chin, teeth gritted. Hau knows of _all that Gladion knows_ about his feelings for Lillie but he still teases him like this. Arceus, if only he could tease him like that. If only he had no sensitivity for their emotional cause.

"I… I have nothing to comment," he mutters. "I'm just watching out in case she snaps their necks or something. She has little to no patience."

"Now that I think about it, we should go there in case she needs backup," comments Lillie. She gives Hau a hopeful, convinced look. "I want to get all those dangerous vibes. I detest crime, but… this is certainly a change of scene. I wouldn't mind exploring it a little more."

"I'll go with ya'. It ain't a bad idea to watch over Moon's antics," Hau cackles. His eyes shift to Gladion, whose eyes have returned to Moon. "We're gonna go help Moon out. We'll be back in a sec."

Gladion leaves the glass of wine, unfinished, on the table. He has little to no regard for his manners at this point. He licks the sweet residue off his lips. "Sure. Don't get into trouble, though. This place in particular seems to attract tons of trouble."

"You'll know we're in danger if I explode something' again, I guess. I'll make sure our Princess stays safe, don't worry." Gladion watches Lillie flush a dull red as he says this. "Let's get goin'. It won't take very long."

Hau leads Lillie away, taking her hand. Adjusting his bow tie, Gladion's attention moves to Moon again, and finds her to be handing the guards the two cups of wine, which they take all too eagerly. She steps closer to them, suggestively moving her hair and her dress in a way that brings 'seduction' to mind.

Gladion's grip on his bow tie tightens. A few sips into the conversation, Moon tells them something that makes them move, and she's guiding them away from their guarding spot just that easily.

He wills himself to look elsewhere to distract himself from the many unreasonable thoughts that are beginning to clutter his mind, undoubtedly clouded by the little alcohol he's had – _what did she tell them? Why did she move like that? Where did she take them?_ – and waits patiently.

Moon emerges from the crowd a few minutes later, looking no less elegant than earlier. Lillie and Hau, for some reason, haven't come back yet. He's immediately skeptical about her nonchalance.

"I saw you."

To his shock, she nods shamelessly. "I know. When I said we were dating earlier, I was joking, _darling_."

"That's _not_ my point!" he exclaims. Moon purses her lips to not laugh. "What did you do?"

"An assassin's skills go far beyond killing people elegantly, Gladbag," she says softly, despite the sparks of danger in her eyes, no doubt thrilled by her actions. "I'm a very skilled pharmacist."

Pharmacist. Wine. Guards being too easily won over.

Gladion caresses his forehead tiredly. _Of course_. "There was _no_ need to poison them. Where did you dump the bodies?"

"Considering I just put them to sleep and I left them in a storage room, I was kind enough to slip the keys under the door, but whether they'll see it in the darkness is another story," Moon explains. "Ah. I love it when plans go so well. Where did Lils and Hau go, by the way?"

Gladion has the bad luck of seeing the answer in that exact moment. Hau is taking Lillie upstairs by the hand, with her giggling behind him and waving a hand at Gladion when she realizes they are watching– because Moon is also watching, mouth open so wide it nearly hits the floor.

"Holy shit, that cunning viper," murmurs Moon. "I wanna cooperate for once and they go and do _that_. Unbelievable!"

"I forgot Hau's got a vibe for dangerous sneaking like this. I guess he got Lillie into the gig, too." Gladion doesn't necessarily mind being left behind like this. He doesn't mind being safe. Moon, however, arms folded and displeasure sketched all over her features, _hates_ the thought of it. "I guess we'll wait, for now?"

Conflicted between Lillie's fun and the stability of the operation, trusting Hau and Lillie to pull off the job, she surrenders. "I guess we do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I bet you didn't see that coming
> 
> yes. 400CQ has now turned into a cheesy romance. yes. Lillie and Hau are in danger and Moon and Gladion are in a romantic scenario. I wonder how those two are gonna end up.
> 
> so yes. we have fake dating, kinda, we have gala dancing, and WE HAVE SO MUCH MORE FOR THE NEXT EPISODEEEE we're gonna kick lonashipping to a real fluffy start boys
> 
> "Get dressed up," orders Moon, grinning. "We're gonna brainwash a seller." - isn't this a great start
> 
> "Don't be silly, we're not gonna steal any money!" / And they are allowed to breathe out in relief, to think that Moon is just bringing up a gimmick for fun. / But then, she pulls up a big, huge, torn oversized shirt over her head, and ties a bandana over her mouth. The shirt has short sleeves but they reach her elbows. She looks ridiculous." - I was vibing real hard with this chapter not gonna lie
> 
> "Moon slams her hand on the counter again. Gladion knows her anger is play-pretend but holy shit." - he's not turned on but he's spooked
> 
> "Commander Annoying, you just left damning evidence of our presence." / "Commander Obnoxious, shut up or you're next!" - I LOVE THESE TWO DUMBASSES SO MUCH
> 
> "Moon elbows Gladion on the side with a pout, and he elbows her in response; Moon's body tilts to a side, and she flails her arms to recover her balance, unsteady on heels. Gladion quickly grabs her arm and stabilizes her, chastising her airheadedness under his breath." - if I had to sum loan up in one line, it would be this
> 
> CAN WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT HOW WELL THEY BLEND TOGETHER TO JUST FUCKING PRETEND AND CAUSE TROUBLE???? THE CHEMISTRY???? THEY'RE SO DUMB AND SO CLEVER AND THEY'RE SO FOND OF EACH OTHER BUT SO NASTY AND SO EVERYTHING I'm dead
> 
> not gonna say much more because next chapter is A Big Shipping Chapter so STRAP IN FOR SOME INTENSE FLUFF NEXT TIME FOLKS BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE


	8. A Mafia In The Works

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hau and Lillie talk about the future. Gladion and Moon dance and reflect on the present.

"Did you see Moon's face? That was great! She _hates_ being left out of the fun!"

"Shhh!" Lillie giggles as Hau swoops her up the stairs, leaping to the top floor with the grace only a member of royalty like her can pull off. "We can't let them hear us! We could get in trouble!"

Hau pops his head past one of the pillars of the hotel. The curved hallway is for the most part empty, sans a couple that is leisurely walking around, probably freshly out of their booked rooms. The rug under their feet is pleasantly clean despite the ruckus below them, which means nobody has been here from the party. Hypothetically, at least.

There are a few doors strung along the fancy walls, but Lillie points at the very obvious one at the center, with a small railing that overlooks the ballroom. "As Mother always said, ' _the bad guys always hide the treasures in the most obvious places_ '."

Hau is surprised to see her using quotes from a figure as prominently bad as Lusamine, but he lets that pass. Traumas shouldn't be addressed during an evening as nice as this; it could be her way of dealing with things. "Ain't that a bit too obvious?"

"Moon once told me that the Kandrus Empire is quite pretentious. This could be their way of showing off."

Hau rubs the back of his neck. "That totally sounds like something she'd say."

Lillie tiptoes around Hau and out of the pillar once they have made sure nobody is guarding the hallway. The click-click of her heels is muffled by the thick emerald rug under her. "I suppose it must be this way, yes? There is little to no doubt in this case."

He hurriedly jogs up to her, wincing. "Dude, no need to venture into the unknown like that. You're gonna give me a heart attack." His words lack sincerity, but they convey concern just as well. She giggles like one of those fairies from the books and paintings. "You're totally into this, eh? I thought you'd be super against doing anything remotely illegal."

"Well… I am not particularly inclined to support endeavors like these. Moon is truly committed to making me experience the 'real world', and all I'm doing is go along with it. It certainly isn't my scene." Lillie shrugs a little, biting her lip. "I suppose sneaking out of Zeffarei and going against a dark overlord truly did things to my behavior. Mother would be disappointed."

Hau doesn't dare laugh, mainly because she isn't. If there's one thing he's learned about both Gladion and Lillie, is that as siblings, they will always give signs as to when something is right to do and when it isn't. Moon has gotten good at it and she can read them both with her eyes closed, but Hau is trying to take things easy and learn.

Lillie doesn't look sad now, but she always looks just _a little_ more down than usual whenever she mentions her mother. It irks Hau more than it should. "You're doing great, don't worry about that. I hate to say Moon's right, but we gotta do both right and wrong before knowing how to grow. She looks dumb, but she's kinda wise in that regard." Hau puts his arms behind his head. "And not gonna lie, this is no biggie. We're takin' back what belongs to your family."

She blinks up at him. "So this doesn't count as a crime?"

"Depends, I guess. Under the scope of morality and all that stuff, we're doing our best. From the Kandrus Empire's perspective, though, we're screwing up," chuckles Hau. He's surprised that Lillie isn't running away just by knowing that. "This place kinda hates us too– uh, they hate Moon more than anybody else, so we gotta be careful and not get found."

"That makes sense," concedes Lillie. "I suppose Gladion is doing a great job at keeping her in check. He cares about her very much, doesn't he?"

Hau would have laughed if it weren't for the impending need to _not_ be loud. "He totally does. I'd say most of her… restraint is her thing, though. She's kinda grown out of being a hermit and going stabby-stabby on innocent people."

Lillie puffs a giggle and elbows his side. "That's not what I mean! Don't you think that Moon and Gladion are… you know?"

Hau smiles. "They have always been cute. I thought they were a thing before I properly got to meet them."

"Arceus, really?" Hau nods eagerly, grinning. "Moon always talked very fondly about you two. She always made it seem like you two were the coolest partners she has ever been with. And she has had a _lot_."

"I guess that's good to hear." Then, he shows her a smug smirk. "But you know those two are kinda _soft_ for each other, right?"

"Soft? As in, affectionate?"

"Uh… not really. I guess I can tell you all 'bout _Moon and Gladbag's Story_ later when all this is over and we ain't in danger of getting our heads cut off."

A shudder runs up her spine instantly. "Can it get _that_ bad?"

Hau chooses not to answer her lest he scares her off definitely, and they keep walking along the corridor very, very carefully. He is under the very paranoid impression that if he makes enough noise, some guard will come out of thin air and chop his head off. Now, as much as he wouldn't like that happening, Lillie _watching_ makes the ordeal about ten times worse.

They fortunately get to the double doors quick enough, and they aren't locked, as Hau discovers. He twists the knob a little further and the doors give in. "Maybe somebody's gotten in before us?"

"As much as I don't like agreeing to Moon's questionable ethics as an assassin, she's probably the only one able to come up with a tonic to put guards to sleep in the middle of the dance floor. I doubt anybody has gotten past the guards, other than us." Lillie pulls the door open just an inch, enough to peer inside. "The room is untouched."

Behind the royal doors lies an actual bedroom that has been repurposed as a storage room, but it's a very poorly organized one. One would assume the treasure and gem of the bids would be hidden away in some box to not let any thief get with their way.

Lusamine's Emerald Necklace, as the tag reads, is simply lying atop a small counter right in front of the wide windows. The glossy surface catches starlight like it's holding the entire universe within it.

Lillie, far above any standards of 'respect for the relics', takes the necklace and studies it for a few seconds. "This truly looks like Mother's jewelry. She has always liked green."

He finds it odd, how distracted and entranced she can become about the silliest and smallest of things. They clash in the way they lead their lives – hers being much more opulent, and his on the road of improvement, but still quite humble; they have met halfway in how they enjoy the most basic of things, in how they appreciate life as it comes and embrace the sunshine.

Hau is proud of Lillie.

"It matches your eyes," observes Hau, mystified by the color. Lillie sighs out, smiling. "Do you wanna put it on? It's yours, after all."

"Oh, sure."

Lillie turns around and parts her hair so Hau has full vision of her neck, pale and untouched by the cruelty of the Sandlands' sun. He does _not_ want to touch that part of her body, that skin; it looks soft to the touch, but that's a thought he's not willing to entertain until they have a proper talk and he sorta mans up about the butterflies in his stomach.

He reaches around her and feels the weight of the necklace hit her collarbone, and he fumbles with the metallic clasp for a few seconds until the necklace hangs loosely around her neck. He can't see her other than the dim reflection on the spotless glass of the window, but he knows she will look radiant all the same.

She turns around, questioning herself as she twiddles with the necklace. "I feel _so_ unbecoming of this for… whatever reason."

"Unbecoming?" Lillie nods timidly. "You're a Princess– no, you're the Empress, dude. You deserve to wear it just as much as Lusamine used to."

"No, that's not the point– Mother was a rather narcissistic and questionably passionate leader, but I'm none of that. We are… drastically different people, very different leaders. This is not something that fits me." Lillie gently caresses the glassy surface covering the gems. "I would never wear something as big as this. It's _heavy_ , almost. I don't want to follow her path. I don't want to be associated with something like this, so it's weird for me to wear it. I feel uncomfortable."

Hau is at a loss of words, hearing this, but he pushes the words out of his mouth to simply fill in the air. "That's fine, y'know. Your mom has done _terrible_ things with _horrid_ people. I'd be a little concerned if you weren't at least a lil' affected."

"That's not it either. I have the feeling it has a lot to do with, um, what this _thing_ represents." She says the word with a level of spite he had not expected. "I don't want to be Mother's shadow. I don't… want to necessarily take after her. It feels wrong for me to sit on the throne when all I have done is sit on a library and study like _that's_ what a leader needs. Leaders cannot be crafted with books, nor with meditation or any sort of strange training and seals."

He doesn't want to chance it and say he's figured her out, but part of him is afraid he might have; he takes a risk. "Are you saying you don't wanna be the Empress?" Lillie shakes her head and she's about to deny his theory, but he doesn't let her. Hands on her shoulders, he gives her an honest look. "I'm not gonna judge you. Nor will Gladbag or Moon. It's your life now; your life, your choices."

"I… I know."

"Then? What is it?"

Lillie takes a few seconds to mull over this, eyes darted to a side where she can avoid his gaze. Finally, she sighs. Her hands are clasped over the necklace.

"I don't think I'm fit for… _all_ of this. For the ruthless passion, the constant battling, the pressure– I'm not fit for it. I truly don't believe that training will make me fit in, or that it's only a matter of time." She speaks with words and voices that aren't hers, but Lusamine's. "I don't have that motivation to lead as Gladion and Moon do. I love the Aedus Empire, and I'm certain I will come to love it even more once this tour comes to an end but… I have realized I _don't_ want the tour to be over. I don't want to go back to sitting down and waiting forever."

Gladion has been studying to possibly run for Emperor, that much everyone knows. Lillie has always been willing to give up the seat so her brother takes over, because she's aware that he's a great fit for the charge. However, she must also know that he's not experienced enough to sit in it, and that if he doesn't pass, she will have to fill in his seat until he's deemed worthy.

Hau always thought Lillie, while holding aversion for the charge as an unavoidable destiny, would still sit down gladly and do as asked. He never expected all this frustration to come up simply because of a _necklace_.

And it's not confirmed whether Gladion wants to even take the charge if he's ever handed the fateful golden envelope inviting to his coronation. Deep inside, Hau knows Gladion won't make it there as easy as Lillie and Wicke have made him believe, and that even if he _does_ make it to that point where he can take over, he might simply choose not to.

"That's why you were _that_ eager about Gladion taking over?" She nods. "I thought it wasn't _that_ bad."

"It's not like I don't like working in the palace per se. I love the palace, and I would not mind working there when things finally settle down. I'm aware it will take time for Mother's crimes to go away and for Gladion to sit on the throne, if it ever does happen– but he's much more ready for it. Everyone knows this."

Hau's eyebrows sag in predicament. "Lillie…"

She purses her lips. "I don't feel bad about any of it. It's not a self-esteem issue. Gladion has had a very hard education under… questionable sources, for a lack of a better word."

"I think he described it as _hell on Earth_."

A bitter smile curls her lips. "It was still great education, but because of what you just said, being jealous about it would be ridiculous. I was _blessed_ to have most of the things I had– and I feel terrible about feeling this bitter about it."

"Dude, what? Lusamine treated you like _shit_." Hau's eyes widen when he realizes that, for all he knows, Lillie might not know all the details about that night– that horrible eye-opening night. "Uh, I don't think you know about all of it, right?"

Asking that is even riskier than simply staying shut; she sighs. "I believe I remember some bits and pieces. It has been a very slow process."

Lillie might have been a sheltered kid, with toys, books, and servants to protect and take care of her. Many people out there would _kill_ to have that; but, would they have it at the cost of their childhood being ruined? Would they sacrifice their welfare for the sake of _toys_ and a big bedroom? Would they be willing to become a vessel of chi for a wicked woman to take?

It's a very complicated conflict that Lillie isn't ready to face; that Lusamine had been taking advantage of her for most of her life. He's sure she hasn't realized it yet. Moon has sometimes mentioned the term 'denial' when talking about Lillie. He now understands why.

"Even if you had toys… you're not being ungrateful for wanting to forget about it. Gladion is still not over most of what happened in his childhood and he's super bitter about it. You've heard how he talks about his godfather, right? Some bad stuff must have happened for him to be still not over it."

Lillie sighs. "Gladion addressed him as 'narcissistic'."

"Kinda got the same vibe too. And that puts you two on I guess similar scenarios, at least emotionally. _Man_ , I'm bad at this," he groans, causing Lillie to smile a little wider because he's trying and that's all that matters. "What I mean is that you got every right to want to move forward. Gladion is gonna understand, and Moon will too."

"She loves being my bodyguard, though– and I love her company."

"So? Do ya' think Moon is with you just because she's your bodyguard?" Lillie is rendered silent under this argument. Hau rubs her shoulders from side to side, and feels her melt just a little. "She loves you just as much as you love her. Yeah, she wanted to have some fun and travel again, but she's looking out for you too; in very weird and Moon-ish ways, but you get my point."

"Still," Lillie looks to a side. Her fingers are threaded with each other and playing with the chain of the necklace, "she's excited to see me on the throne. I don't want to disappoint anybody else. I have already let Mother down by leaving, so I–"

Hau shuts her up by cupping both her cheeks and pushing them together. The skin becomes red wherever he touches. "No. Out with that trash. You ain't letting anyone down– you're doing what's best for you, period. Moon is gonna be much happier to see you out of there and happy than sitting down and pretending to be happy. We wanna see you smilin' and being happy. That's what matters."

"But people expect me to–"

"They expect you to follow your mom's steps but that's _not_ how it has to be. It's fine to be responsible but you also gotta look out for your own good, dude." His grip becomes soft, no longer squishing, merely holding her face in place. "I want you to be happy. I don't wanna see you sad because some people wanna see you be somebody you truly are not."

Lillie's eyes glisten under the lamplight; she won't cry, but she's shrinking in emotion. His thumbs caressed the apples of her cheekbones soothingly, and she leans against his left hand in contemplation. "What if everything goes awry because I wanted to be free?"

"We will fix it. We always manage to find a way out somehow– this ain't gonna be any different. That's how we do things. Gladbag will probably step in to fill the gap for you eventually, so I guess it's a matter of waiting– what matters is that your life is _yours_." He widens his eyes for emphasis, mustering feelings he can't put into words. "Remember what he said the other day? Nobody is gonna travel the world for you. And we're gonna be here for you."

Lillie nods curtly, her form rising with an enormous sigh. She looks a little younger, suddenly. "Do you think I… would make a good Empress in any way?"

He gives her a small smile. "I'm sure you'd succeed in anything you put your heart into. You've walked miles and miles to go against a dude several millennia ahead of us in terms of strength. You're brave, compassionate, and… just great, Lillie." He tilts his head a fraction in endearment. "You'd be good. I could see you giving food to the poor and drawing things with the kids of Zeffarei. Everyone already loves you in there, you know."

"Really?" Her eyes crinkle, clearly moved by his words. Hau feels his heart soar at the sight. "You are great, too. I have always admired how good you are at what you do. And how you hold Gladion and Moon together. You are one of the most caring people I know."

His eyes brighten. "Really?"

"Really."

"That's rich, coming from somebody as considerate as you."

"What do you–"

The doors to the room bust wide open and about a dozen guards begin to pile around the entrance with their spears held up high. "Thieves! They have come to steal the precious treasure in this building!"

Lillie takes a step behind Hau out of impulse; he guides her behind himself. "Hey, you're stormin' into a very private moment! Not cool, dude!"

One of them points at Lillie, whose hands are still over her necklace yet she's hiding absolutely nothing. "She's wearing the necklace! Daring thieves are not welcome into this establishment– you shall pay with your blood!"

"Dude, you're so annoying! We were just sightseeing!"

The guards, however, don't listen, and they begin to organize themselves around the entrance to block any possible exits. Hau, however, is very aware of the other exit behind them, a risky but very open one to take: the window, the sky, even.

"Yo, Lillie," he murmurs as she gives them her very telling I'm-gonna-go-all-out face. It's oddly cute on her, "can you, uh, fly?"

Her eyes skim the room analytically. They land on a small broom tucked in a corner behind a thick curtain. "Very likely so, why?"

"Cool." Hau readies his staff. "We're gonna do things the classy way."

* * *

"They sure are taking their time."

"It's been only a few minutes, Moon."

She indignantly crosses her arms. "I would've taken a lot less _and_ I would've brought souvenirs with me." Her lips circle in the shape of a small 'o', turning to him. "Do you think they maybe got caught? We should–"

He stops her terrorizing right there, grabbing her arm so she doesn't walk any further. "Stay still, _darling_. You don't want any of the guards to pick up on your presence, right?" Moon succumbs to his words with bad grace, standing back again. "Good. Lillie is with Hau. Nothing will happen to either of them."

Moon sighs out to express her impatience, rather than her disagreement. Both know Lillie would have been fine even if she went on her own, and the same goes for Hau. He can admit it's hard to see with all the people they have around, dancing and laughing and some are kissing it's _so gross_ to see. Moon is distractedly observing the couples with absolutely no interest; he shares the sentiment intensely. There is nothing as boring as having to wait for your partners in proverbial crime in a place as crowded as this.

"I had expected you to be satisfied, considering they are alone and probably acting all cute with each other." Moon turns to him, an eyebrow raised. "I thought that was what you wanted all along."

Moon leans back against the table, mindless of the possibility of it moving. She shoots him a smirk. "I knew you would get into this too." The smirk widens into a grin. "You're rooting for their happiness as much as I am. You're just trying to keep your edgy persona– but you can't fool _me_ , mister."

In his defense, nobody can ever fool her. When they had first met, she had come across as lousy, distracted and as though she was a hurricane: she came, messed with absolutely _everything_ and left destruction behind. She skips stones and kicks trees down like she has the license to and in a way, he's grown a little fond of that chaos as time had passed. It's always a bit too silent when she's quiet or gone.

Seeing her eye the dance floor and the stairs, sometimes snickering to herself and others looking at him, he has the feeling she's about to unleash some of that thunder again.

"This is kinda boring," she states, drumming her fingers on her forearm. She looks strangely compromised. "I could try to, uh, knock out those guards for when Hau and Lillie come back. That could make their escape a little easier."

Gladion rolls his eyes. "Are you _so_ restless that you suddenly want to pick a fight with people?"

"Well, _no_!" Moon jams her heel on the floor. She's fidgeting a little, as if watching everyone dance while she's still is driving her up a wall. "I'm simply looking out for the safety of the operation!"

He has no answer for that, so he doesn't give her any. He knows her to be restless and a little too irritated at the thought of being left out of the operation, and in a way, he's just as impatient as her and he's growing just a little restless as well. What could be taking them so long? Had they possibly encountered security? That's likely, but they should have come back a little ago already, so–

A hand on his shoulder cuts his thoughts short. Moon, leaning close to him in her green glory, is pointing to the dance floor with an evil grin.

"Let's dance," Moon offers, hands on her hips. "Somebody's gotta get some practice for those posh and obnoxious royal galas. I make a pretty good dancer, you see."

"You're out of your mind if you think we're going to dance," grumbles Gladion, taking a reckless rip of wine that he nearly chokes with when Moon stomps to stand on her tiptoes right in front of him.

She has a few strands of hair brushing her jaw. "If we don't dance, I'm gonna break your kneecaps with my hands alone."

"Pretty sure that's illegal."

"And you not wanting to dance is illegal too!" she complains, twisting her lips. "It's not like you are the Ponyta Prince or some charming gentleman–"

"The sentiment is reciprocated."

"– but we have to kill time somehow! Unless you want me to get wasted with this cheap wine and dance on my own, we're gonna have to get distracted in some other way," she declares, puffing her cheeks.

He knows better than to let her do _that_ , out of all possibilities. She will probably go out there and give it all and her perfectly built Kalosian persona, elegant and using a fan will disappear and all the guards will see is a _criminal_. The alternative of dancing with her, however, is also less than ideal. The strangers around them aren't partaking in any dance; they are waltzing.

"I… it's not about not wanting to dance," Gladion mutters, trying to get his point across, but as always, Moon remains oblivious to any implications of romance around them. "But they are _waltzing_ , Moon."

"Good for them," she says, sarcastic. "We don't gotta dance like we're in love, Gladion. We're just gonna get distracted for a while and leave. Nothing serious."

He sighs. "People will think we are a thing."

"Isn't that the point, you nuthead?"

She makes a very valid point. It drops on him so hard that he nearly breaks his neck. Her proposal makes an alarming amount of sense, or it might be that he's scaring himself shitless because he's considering it. He's considering the possibility of dancing with Moon in a romantic aura. A romantic ambiance. A _love-is-in-the-air_ kind of dance. This is a very strange place that neither Moon or he fit in.

But she holds her hand out. Grabs his wrist, his fingers gentle despite the challenge curling her lips into a sneer. "Are you scared of a little dance, Gladion?"

And she dares to use his name and it makes him feel so, so _weird_ but in a good way. He feels a little lighter, a little safe, knowing they are both going to jump into the pond full of crocodiles that is this crowd. They don't have to be safe, even. The thought of dancing with her makes the ordeal a little easier on his heart.

Mostly because she's phrasing it as a challenge. It's all glass and fake. He wonders if she harbors any interest in the romance around them and is trying to throw him into the mix. He can't blame her; part of him is curious as to what it could be like to dance with her.

He twists his hand to grab her wrist – mindful to _not_ grab her hand – and wordlessly leads her to the dancefloor, interpreting her cackles of mischief as her victory. He's never truly danced before, but they have danced in more than one way: they have clapped around a fire, they have fought against and alongside each other, and they have danced around each other's boundaries for ages.

It has never been a conscious fight, but Gladion is very aware of Moon's respect for his space. She never mentions it – they never mention anything about their friendship, after all – but he knows it's there. They have been slowly chipping away at each other's antics and barriers, ticking each other off and exchanging blows more than they have ever exchanged words.

It has always been about letting himself grow bigger and closer to others, Hau, Lillie, Wicke, even Ilima. Moon, though– she's always been different. It has always been exciting, new. Everything is always different when it comes to her. She's not a normal person, so he can't expect things to be normal, either.

Considering how far it has taken him, _them_ , he can't find it in him to complain.

Moon puts her hand on his, and another on his chest, right above his heart. His free hand rests on her hip, feeling the sequins brush his calloused fingertips. He studies her with scrutiny unknown to mankind, and she responds in kind, but with a crook at the corner of her mouth.

"I never thought you had the innate ability to dance, Gladion," she says as he guides them around the small circle devoid of people around them. He had expected her to take the lead and maybe make them dance a silly overly-passionate tango just to get a rise out of him and act as freely as she does. It's uncanny for her to blend with the circumstances like this. "What a lovely surprise."

In the book about the Karee Empire that he's been devouring – because it's very well written, not because it has anything to do with Moon – he's read that Kareean people are pretty good dancers. As a general rule of thumb, most of them took dancing classes being as young as five, and Moon had run away from home when she was seven.

Her practice had probably been cut short, but she still lets herself be carried away and doesn't step on his shoes, which is very nice of her. "Faba gave me a few salon-style lessons with mediocre results, but I still know how to defend myself," he states, nearly defensive.

"I guess that makes sense," she hums. He's not sure which one of their hands is clammy, but he dares guess it's both. "I used to take lessons when I was a kid, but I was, uh, a kid. Not much coordination on my part."

He chuckles humorlessly. "And look at you now, a full-fledged dangerous assassin."

"Oh, you're making me want to step on you. You're hurting your poor girlfriend. She's gonna end up leaving you for the first gentleman that sweeps her off her feet," Moon dramatically tells him, letting go of his hand to wipe an invisible tear off her cheek.

More importantly, his free hand falls instantly on her hip, and hers finds a place on his chest.

He only becomes aware of this when she blinks and averts his gaze. Moon has always been blunt and anything but _shy_ , so her breaking away this unspoken contract really catches him off guard. He soon discovers that she's not shying away from him; she's looking at the stairs.

With a yank, he turns her so she can no longer look in that direction. "Stop worrying about them. They will be fine."

"I'm not concerned, _you_ are concerned." Moon places a hand over his on her hip. "Your hands are kinda shaking. Stop fretting over this, you worrywart."

She's one hundred percent right; he's trembling. Why? He has no idea. It could have to do with the fact that he's dancing with her and that she looks sort of pretty– no, she _looks_ pretty, out of the muck and into the starlight and opulence of the room, but she's always been pretty; all of this is something he's decided to _not_ think about until he has a moment and a good day. It's her fault for teasing him and wanting to dance.

This is stupid.

He doesn't pull away, and she smiles to herself. "Here's a very spicy hypothesis," she begins, instantly grabbing his attention. "What if Lillie and Hau are kissing right now, as we speak?"

"Thank you very much for that unneeded image," he mutters, making her eyes crinkle, evil and poison. "I didn't need to think about that."

"You know, I'm super surprised you have given Hau your blessings– if that's even a thing, which I hope it isn't. It sounds so ancient, _giving someone your blessings_. Imagine you asked me 'hey Moon, can I grab some butter to put on my toast?' and I said 'Of course, have my blessings'. It sounds _so_ weird."

His brow pinches. "First, I would _never_ ask for something as vile as butter on my toast." Moon rolls her eyes, puffing a sigh. "Second, why would I _not_ give him my blessings? Lillie's life is not my business. They are free to do as they wish."

For some ungodly reason, her smile flattens but grows fonder, eyes creased softly. He feels something physical clench within him. "And I'm glad you're so lenient in that department. Lillie deserves everything and everyone in this life and the next. I wish I had known about Lusamine sooner. Maybe things would've been different."

He detects a trace of misplaced guilt. "None of what happened was your fault."

"I _know_ ," she says. She adds no sugar or spice. Her voice is naked for him to listen to below the classical music drifting around them. "All I'm saying is that Lillie has gone through a lot, y'know. And you have, too. And Hau. Everyone has gone through a shitstorm and it makes me very happy to see you look after your sister and Hau. Seeing you're rooting for them as much as I am just… makes me very giddy and excited."

Gladion doesn't dare blink, afraid the rare expression of kindness will disappear if he doesn't hold it fast. He commits the spark in her eyes and the exact angle of her lips to memory. "You have done a lot for them, too."

The expression doesn't shift per se, but it lightens up considerably. "Oh, of course, but it wouldn't have been nice to butt into my super noble speech like that. That's utter nonsense, _mon chéri_."

That thick, fake Kalosian accent will be the end of him someday. He smirks. "Growing a sense of adequacy while standing _literally_ in the den of our number one enemy?"

Moon tilts her head, teasing. "It's not like I'm gonna stop pestering you anytime soon, so you better stop praying. I'm stuck with you for now."

Drowning out a laugh with a sigh – because he doesn't know what to do with himself anymore – he pulls her close to where she can't see him smile, his cheek against her temple and her nose digging into his throat. She's a little taller than usual with the heels on, and Gladion can't help but wonder how she manages to stand on those.

A warm puff of air leaves her mouth, and her hands rise from his chest to his face, cupping his cheeks delicately to look at him in the eye. That same foreign punch to the guts along with inexplicably warm cheeks comes back in tenfold.

Gladion hates it when she touches him and triggers _whatever this is_. He might have an allergy to her, except that allergies are supposed to suck and this – her touch, her proximity – doesn't suck.

"You have your sister's eyes," she states gently, as gentle as she can ever get. Moon is not the type of girl to accept flowers or draw hearts on a tree, but there is something to appreciate in the soft volume she speaks to him with. It feels like they are the only ones in the room, suddenly. "I never thought I would see you care for someone as much as you care for your sister. It makes me happy that you care for her, that you're all mushy-mushy for her."

Moon and he have a rare, one of a kind thing going on that he can't explain. When they are surrounded by friends and people and the _world_ , they grow spikes and prick blood out of one another; when they are alone, hands on each other and hearts exposed in their proximity – something he shouldn't allow, but who is he to deny her after all this time? – their words grow tender. They phase in and out of it like waters reaching the shore.

He likes the duality. He likes knowing that she has layers. He likes that she lets him explore all of them when there is nobody else around. It makes him feel safe, within the vastness of her impossible and unpredictable persona.

He knows her to be abrasive, bitter on the tongue, heavy on his memory but light on his heart. He knows he can trust her, and she knows she can trust him too. She's anything but sweet, anything but polite unless it's a farce – in which case one should run away. He likes the fun and the banter; he likes the whispered confessions and the embers of peace.

Her thumbs trace his cheeks very slowly and carefully, tentative and unsure. He can't keep his eyes off of hers. He wonders if she can read the thousand things running through his head, or if she's seeing the blank turmoil that her touch sparks.

"I'm happy to see you smiling, too," she says, chuckling. There is a pang of awkwardness to her words, as if she's stumbling through it, though she makes it look _so_ easy. "I rarely see you smile, but when you do, I'm kinda happy. You might be an edgelord, but you can smile, too. I'm not good with all this… _touchy-touchy_ kinda stuff, but you're smiling now so I suppose that's good, right?"

Her voice is a little more chipper than soft, a touch of teasing, and he's _smiling_ indeed. He catches himself on the act before he can deny it, and he erases the small rise of his lips and makes her laugh with it. She seems more delighted than victorious in her tease, but at this point, he's certain she _adores_ getting him flustered for absolutely no reason. Whether she envisions the romantic aspect of his blush or she simply likes to fuck with him, it's unclear.

It's a novelty in torture. "Arceus, you're insufferable."

"I know, I'm a genius." He doesn't know what's worse: the fact that she sounds content and proud or the fact that she's overlooking the gross blush under her hands. "But… I was being honest, you know. When I said you should smile more, I meant it."

"I smile very often, you know." He jabs her between her eyebrows with his index finger. Moon yelps. "You're the one who isn't paying attention."

"Then make it more obvious!" Moon insists, shaking her head. "You just wanna hide that from me so I don't sue you to the edgelord authorities. Robbing me off a healthy sight to torture me is _horrible_." She sighs softly, voice mildly mellow. "I'm gonna beat the shit out of you when we have the opportunity."

"You were cuter when you were honest, you know," he counters, smirking wolfishly. "You would look even cuter with my blade on your throat, maybe."

Moon has tiptoed to meet his gaze in defiance, all tease and no bite, and he's holding her closer by impulse. He wishes he could let her go and brawl out the jittery needles she's pricking into his heart, that she could shed some light into what she's doing to his resolve to keep people at bay.

He is about to tell her that she's impossible and that they should go look for Hau and Lillie, but then a tremendous _BOOM_ ripples from the ceiling and it drives everyone around them into a frenzy, screaming and sinking to the floor.

But Moon and him have other plans, concealed by the dancers. Gladion and Moon push each other close by impulse, analyzing their surroundings.

"What was that!?"

"Darling, I'm scared!"

"We need to leave!"

"Holy _shit_ , that was loud," that's Moon, among everyone else, obviously stating the least necessary. She's slapping her cheeks out of their sweet licorice reverie. "Right, right! We're kicking into action!"

"That had to be Hau," Gladion states, letting go of her. He adjusts his bow tie and then proceeds to discard his fancy tux blazer. "We have to leave before the guards catch up with them. We will meet with them outside."

Her eyes sparkle like diamonds, jumping up and down. "We're finally gonna get to kick some ass?"

Gladion puts his arm on the handle of his Silvally, previously hidden by his jacket. "I'm afraid so."

Grabbing her by the wrist to lead her out of the crowd, they set off and out of the ballroom, taking to the hallway where a good bunch of guards are waiting for the intruders to show up. Gladion notices that there is fire coming from the top floor and the ceiling, and that people are remaining inside as guards assist them. Moon and he are the only ones running away, thus putting them in a place of guilt.

Oh, it's not like he's about to regret that now. "They are trying to escape! It's the Kalosian couple! They must have been the ones that caused the–"

"We got no time for this!" Moon yells through the screams, her heel landing on the guard's face with a gracious cartwheel that, miraculously, doesn't show any of her underwear. "Let us through already! We got stuff to do!"

She lands on her two feet and proceeds to punch a guard on the stomach just as Gladion defends himself with his Silvally and successfully pushes through the melees. Some of them suffer minor shoulder injuries, and a few others drop to the floor after he had had to defend himself. Smoke is coming from the ceiling and people are yelling behind him, but all he can keep track of at the moment is the number of guards and Moon's shape dashing alongside his.

And then, right when they are at the exit and in the middle of their wild dash for the exit, Moon stumbles and yelps. Her pace is completely broken. " _Fuck_!"

He's close behind her when he asks, "What's up!?"

"My heels! I can't run on those and–!" Moon dodges a hit with a step, then elbows the guard on the neck to knock him out. She tries to walk again, but she nearly falls again. "This is bad! I can't run on–!"

Moon gasps and nearly _screams_ when smooth hands scoop her up, one arm under her back and another under her knees as Gladion runs through the remaining guards and kicks his way through with her in his arms. His Silvally is in its scabbard and all he can rely on now is luck.

Moon is quick to complain about this arrangement. "What are you _doing_? This is not a wedding, Gladion!"

He lets out a humorous chuckle. "We came in as a couple, we might as well leave in style!" Moon keeps her hand on her updo while laughing hysterically in his arms. "Now is not the time to be worrying about your appearance, of all things!"

"You're insane!" she yells into the ruckus, but she sounds more delighted than concerned, much to his relief. Thankfully she's light in his arms and presents little to no trouble– in fact, she grabs his Silvally from the scabbard and twists to stab a guard that was about to strike him from behind. "You better not think I'm a damsel in distress now– I'll headbutt you and knock you out!"

Right as they reach the exit, however, another problem materializes right in front of him. More guards are piling on the streets and lurking the corners of the grand open area that conforms most of the town. Reikyuu is small, and its conveniently _inconvenient_ size is about to kick them where it hurts.

If he lets Moon down so she can remove her shoes – which, to her credit, she's already doing – she will be taken, and if he doesn't let her down, fighting will be near to impossible. How are they going to leave if there are so many people aiming for his throat and–

"Yo, duck and cover!" screams a voice from above. Orange, red, white and _fire_ coils in the air, a few feet above of Moon and Gladion. "We're gonna set this place on fire!"

Gladion knows who that voice belongs to, but he has no time to be relieved; a stream of energy and hellfire ripples downwards and explodes in the middle of the streets a few seconds after, but most soldiers have ducked into the buildings by then. If anything, they will be unconscious, if not harmed severely; holding Moon on his arms, he knows he had almost fallen backward at the pressure of the wave.

But seeing his chance, he takes it; Gladion rushes onwards through the vacant street. Lillie and Hau zoom to their sides. "Dudes! Are you two okay? Those guys were _nasty_!"

"They nearly cornered us into a rather bad situation, but we luckily got ourselves out of it," Lillie informs them, looking forward and touching the necklace on her chest. "I also grabbed this from their chambers. We had a, uh, hard time."

Moon and Gladion spare them a glance, only to be shocked. She speaks up first. "You're _flying_! That's awesome!"

"She's flying a _broom_! Like those witches from the G. H. Gengar portraits! Isn't that _cool_!?"

Lillie is, indeed flying on a broom. She looks like anything but a witch, but she might as well be one with that dignified stoic pose and the very un-witchy blush adorning her cheekbones at Hau's praise. She clears her throat. "Can you two run?"

"I can, but not for too long, considering I'm holding her."

"That's fine; we only need to get away to lose the guards– they are already on our tails, and they are about to close the gates." Lillie moves her hands a little. The effect of that is unknown, but he feels a bit lighter on his feet. "We will need to jump over the barriers of the town. Get ready!"

In his arms, Moon chuckles. She's putting little to no fight about being held this way. "Never thought I'd see you take risks like these, Gladbag."

"That's what I get for adopting your insane philosophy," he mutters, not as fierce as he would have liked. "But you're the one being babysat out of here, so I guess I'm not the loser in this situation."

Moon pouts. "Meanie. You absolute meanie. If my feet didn't depend on you right now, I'd be biting myself out of here."

"Go on and try; I'm not going to let you go and get caught by them. That would be more trouble."

She looks up at him for a few seconds, studying his expression. Gladion hopes that the affectionate layer under his words will go unnoticed if he puts in that last sentence – as if her safety is merely convenient, as if she's not important to him – but she sees right through it, as always, and smiles as though he's an idiot and she's been _blessed_ to have that,

Her forehead finds a home in the crook of his neck. He nudges her with his cheek while focusing on the jump, just a few feet away.

Securing Moon in his arms, he grunts and does as Lillie said, taking a tremendous leap that requires little to no effort on his part. They are soaring, flying towards the stars as the building of the hotel burns, burns and burns to ashes. The yells of people are beginning to echo louder, meaning that everyone has finally left the facility.

He regards the bundle of smiles and giddy noises in his arms with a stale voice. "I just hope you know that we are _never_ coming back here again."

Moon shrugs. "I guess that's fair."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gladion: I feel like I have an allergy to Moon but not really  
> Gladion: oh what could this be  
> Gladion: I definitely am not developing feelings that I cannot identify  
> Moon: you gotta unlock level 70 for that you loser
> 
> I wrote this while listening to 'ocean eyes' and it shows tbh
> 
> Updates will be a bit irregular for a few days now due to some health issues (no covid or anything, it's other stuff lmao) but I realized that I left the story at a pretty saucy place so I really wanted to post this chapter. After all, the whole story has been written and it's a matter of sitting down and betaing it before posting, so if updates aren't as frequent as usual, have my apologies bfjiekdos
> 
> I HOPE THAT THIS SPOONFUL OF LONASHIPPING + HAULILLIE WILL MAKE UP FOR MY ABSENCE HBJGFJDKSÑL I really REALLY LOVED writing this chapter because it's just so wholesome and so sweet and so fluffy and IT JUST FALLS SO PERFECTLY IN THE PACE OF THE STORY I'M SO GLAD
> 
> you see the importance of waiting now. we gotta develop the mountain before climbing it. and next chapter will have SOME MORE STUFF SO DO LOOK FORWARD TO THAT I will inform you that lona dancing like that was bound to happen at some point because they are Starting To Feel Things For Each Other and that's so important IM CRYING
> 
> I really have nothing else to say my heart is weak and my everything is weak for this chapter it's so FLUFFY AND SO EVERYTHING I CRY AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA TAKE ALL MY FUCKING UWUS LONASHIPPING


	9. Dreamboat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moon is met with an earth-shattering realization as they meet with an old friend.

" _The Kalosian Necklace Mafia_ , huh?" Gladion's eyebrow twitches, reading the brochure with bored eyes. At this point, there is little he can be surprised about. "And here I was, thinking I could have a peaceful season."

Three curious heads peek from behind him, eyes fluttering innocently. Lillie's shy but very complacent voice titters on his ear. "Is it very bad?"

"Considering they have pretty accurate sketches on this brochure, and this brochure is very likely spread all over the Dominion, it's safe to assume everyone knows about us at this point," Gladion passes the brochure behind him, and thin fingers grab it.

Moon walks a few steps away from them, reading the paper with a deepening frown. "This is ridiculous!" The other three turn to her, finding her to be staring at the picture in great disapproval. "They didn't even get my jawline right! And my hair looks super frizzy!"

"In all fairness, we were kinda all over the place that night," says Hau, chuckling. "At least we're safe now. That was one hell of a ride, man."

Gladion isn't sure if the ride is quite over yet. They had rushed through the entirety of the Sandlands for the whole night, and it's worth mentioning that Moon did it barefoot. They changed out of their gala clothes and buried their shoes in the sand, then took the dresses to sell elsewhere. Deeming the Dominion to be, yet again, after them to give them proper execution, they had decided to take refuge somewhere close to the Shongshu Watchpoint.

Moon had suggested climbing up and beating the shit out of anyone that dared rat them out. Gladion, with all the respect and fondness he could muster, smacked her on the neck and that began a brawl that nearly ended in disaster. Hau and Lillie had been friendly enough to point out that 'they had been nice and quiet for one night' and that 'they look better when they're civile'.

Gladion doesn't know what he prefers. Watching Moon pace around in absolute disgust is mildly amusing. "We look absolutely _ridiculous_ here. I look like a Pongii. A gross one."

"The Pongii?" asks Hau carefully. "You mean those guys with the mushrooms on their heads? _That's_ your standard for gross stuff!"

"I look like I have a mushroom on my head! I'm all against hairspray and vanity and all that posh stuff but I look beyond salvation here!" Moon points at her figure on the clearly misinterpreted portrait. She sighs. "They could have drawn me a pretty picture at least. This must be the worst one I've seen so far."

Gladion studies her with what little patience he has left. Her ideas had once again gotten them in trouble, and while he's gotten infinitely better at withstanding her knack for danger, that doesn't mean he will condone it. "We wouldn't be in this mess if you had been better at, you know, simply _not_ sticking your nose into the matter."

" _Our_ noses," inflects Lillie.

"Right, _our_ noses." Moon gives him a withering look, falling to the ground in exasperation. "This was supposed to be a nice break from Zeffarei, and now we have guards on our backs."

Moon defensively crosses her legs and arms, adapting a dignified pose. "I certainly wouldn't have vouched to steal the necklace if they hadn't stolen it in the first place! By all laws of morality, we've done the right thing and _they_ are wrong!"

"Yeah, but we could get our heads chopped off!" Gladion says, teeth gritted.

Moon shakes her head. "That's bullshit. They're bluffing. They _know_ they're not gonna take us."

"Why would they _bluff_ through a Dominion-wide warning to look out for us?"

"To scare us off. It's all lies." Moon takes another look at the brochure and makes a face before tearing it to little pieces. "See? No longer a problem. And if they come for us, they're gonna have a bad time fighting us off."

"We should still be careful, though." Hau presses his cheek on his palm, nibbling on a little sandwich that he _definitely_ hadn't stolen from a guard on the actual watchpoint. "We're headed to places and y'know, guards are all over those places. Unless we decide to leave this place and early and go back–"

"No, we can't go back just yet," says Lillie, sighing. "We still have so much to see! And we can't blame Moon for all that happened. Hau and I performed a rather clumsy escape, and we were retrieving something that belonged to Mother."

Moon scans Lillie up and down. "Where's the necklace, by the way?"

"It's in my backpack," Lillie says, a touch hesitant. "I folded it between a change of pants and a dress. It will be fine."

She nods at this. "Right. Then, we could say the operation was a success!" Moon throws her weight back to the grass, sighing blissfully. "I love when things go exactly as planned! We got back a family treasure and had _heaps_ of fun!"

"It would have been much more enjoyable if we had done things right," grumbles Gladion. "Especially since the consequences leave a lot to be desired."

Moon turns her head to eye Gladion, grinning cheekily. "Aw, don't be like that, Gladbag. We had tons of fun, you and I!"

She shoots him a wink and a teasing laugh that sends his eyes away from her, as well as his general focus. She isn't implying anything untrue. After all, he _did_ have fun, chases and consequences aside. However, admitting that to her would inflate her ego in ways that nobody needs, so instead of succumbing, he decides to fight her.

"We would be much better off without all of this, though," he grumbles, vaguely gesturing around him. "I can't believe you pulled this off again."

Whether he says it appreciatively or disdainful, not even he himself knows. What he does know is that Moon is giggling to herself like the absolute demon she is and that Hau and Lillie are staring at them with narrowed eyes.

Lillie seems pleased despite their dire situation. Gladion would have expected her to be much more fretty about this. "Married banter aside," she coughs, causing Moon and Gladion to turn her into ash with their stare, "we should move soon. As much as I like this particular spot, I have the feeling a very bad storm is closing in on us."

"Ah, that seems to be the case," says a voice from a few feet away. "I thought the weather would be a little warmer in the Kandrus Empire, but I couldn't have been more wrong."

The figure of a soldier– no, of a _Captain_ closes in, wearing his generic pleasant yet _oh so annoying_ smile like a teacup that is perfectly full and happy. Ilima regards them with easy politeness and charm, and as he looks down at Moon at his feet, his smile grows wider and warmer.

She points a finger at him from below. "You're an absolute stalker. I can't believe Gladbag and Hau's tendencies rubbed off on you." A sigh. "Unbelievable."

Gladion groans. Hau laughs.

"It's great to see you as well, Moon. You seem to be in good shape," says Ilima, a chuckle bursting past his words. He looks up to see Lillie and Hau staring at him in surprise. Gladion is sure he's _seething_. "What a sight for sore eyes you all are. I was wondering when we would cross paths."

Lillie hurriedly rushes to Ilima, beaming. It's good to know somebody finds genuine joy in seeing him, at least. "It's great to see you too! I assume you must be here in duty, right?"

"Well… not quite. I'm not here in military service. I would say this is all much more casual business." Ilima's ever so dark but gentle eyes land on his. "As far as I know, I will be here for a while. Wicke has sent me here personally too, to make sure all of you are doing great."

Ilima isn't in his soldier clothes, but rather a hybrid of both. He has his sword on, as well as a thick white jacket that could very well blind a few birds in this humid forest. His hair is as perfectly bright and done and everything screams _charming_ and prince-worthy and, again, how can Moon be friends with somebody as pretentious as this man?

A little laugh escapes him. Moon deadpans. "You've seen those ugly papers all over the place, right?"

"That would be the case." His laugh grows a little louder, a hand bent under his chin with that posh accent and presence he carries with him. Gladion will _never_ understand how Moon seems to get along with him that well. "I have seen a few guards handing out papers. I was given a few, but it took me a little to figure out it was you four behind this hustle."

"Dude, we look awful in those pics." Hau grimaces, troubled. "Imagine being framed for stealin' something that belongs to Lillie. It's insane."

"It certainly is uncanny, but I doubt you will have any issue handling this problem." Ilima counters, placid. "These sorts of crimes usually fade away in a matter of days. Simply keep low for a few days and you will be fine."

A collective sigh escapes the three warriors; as always, Moon is unbothered by all of this. "Thank goodness," sighs Lillie, smiling at Ilima truthfully. "As much as the experience was certainly educative, I would rather keep traveling safely. I suppose Moon's past here doesn't really help our situation, but…"

Moon grins at her. "My past has shaped me into the woman I am today. You have to accept the whole package if you wanna travel with me, Lils."

"It's a very heavy and annoying package," Gladion says to nobody in particular.

A rock crosses the distance and hits him square on the forehead.

Ilima's eyes widen; not at the show or Moon's antics, but at something he supposedly has in his backpack. "Speaking of packages– how could I have forgotten?" He digs his hand into his backpack. "I sincerely apologize for my distraction. You are… a rather out-worldly bunch."

The Captain takes cautious steps towards Gladion whilst rummaging through his golden backpack; he hands out an equally as golden envelope with a red wax seal on the opening, frills sparkling under the clouded sun of the river bay. He curiously flips the envelope around, trying to make out its contents.

Behind him, Lillie swallows a little gasp. Hau blinks. Moon is watching them as well, curious, but only the sorcerer speaks out. "What's that?"

"A letter from the palace." That much is obvious, but the way he says it betrays a certain meaning Gladion can't shake off. Ilima gives him a lukewarm smile. "I believe it's long overdue."

His eyes widen a fraction, enough to show his surprise, and he delicately rips the envelope open. The wax peels off the golden, flower-scented paper; Moon, Hau, and Lillie surround him with equal levels of interest, which only grow bigger when he finally opens the envelope and takes out the small letter, folded into three and rimmed by golden decorations and a small crown atop the actual body of the letter.

Two full minutes of silence and suspense hang in the air.

Moon walks away first, hands on her cheeks, and lies down on the ground; she's going through a very hard existential crisis.

"Arceus on a pillow, on a bed and a bike," she mutters. "I can't believe Gladbag is gonna be the Emperor and he's gonna become my _boss_."

She's right, and it's a little hard to process. He's sure a part of him has left his physical body and is flying somewhere, for he finds no way to communicate any of the many things he's feeling. It starts with confusion, and he needs to read the letter again. Then comes the relief, the surprise, and then a sudden sense of disorientation because _he's gonna be the Emperor of a whole Empire._ Which is what an Emperor is; the king of an Empire.

They are communicating he has passed the royal exams, and that because of his verified connections to his family, the throne has belonged to him from the beginning of time. He is the next heir to the throne the second Lillie decides to leave.

Gladion has walked a very long road. It's sobering to think about. He began from absolutely nothing and then, out of nowhere, he was fighting pirates and finding his family, then losing someone dear to him and getting her back, then walking the path to defeat the Realm's greatest danger.

And now, here he is. Sitting on the ground, half a year or so later, being told he might become an authority soon. Hau's hand clasps on his shoulder and gives it a shake, but whatever he says is drowned out by the white fuzz of shock.

"Is…" He coughs. "Is this real?"

"Don't you see the Council's signature right there? I checked it myself!" Ilima is right. There is a very neat signature scribbled at the bottom. It makes the letter much more surreal. "You can have my most sincere congratulations. When I first met you, I never thought you would get this far–"

" _Tell me about it_!" says Moon from the distance, still disgruntled and seemingly collapsed. Gladion tosses her a rock that she easily deflects by rolling closer to them.

Ilima chuckles. "I never thought you would ever become higher than this. Those exams are tough to pass, but I always had a hunch they would let you in nevertheless– after all, you are Lillie's brother. I'm proud of you." Gladion believes him this time; he believes his pride, his happiness, but just _this_ once. "You will be a great Emperor when the time comes. And when you wish to swear the charge, of course."

Hesitant, Gladion turns his head to who he knows will be more affected by this: Lillie; however, he finds her in no state of distress. Her eyes are round and her lips are parted, and maybe tears will fall down her face but something in her expression – be it the slight crinkle of her eyes, the wonder in her evergreen irises – tells him that won't be the case.

Gladion murmurs her name slowly, barely audible, and she shakes her head with a small smile. "Ah, sorry. I don't mean to look emotional or anything, I…" She purses her lips, and in a smooth motion descends to the ground to hug him, looping her arms around his shoulder. "I'm so happy to hear they have accepted your lineage, and that… well, this means you are officially part of the family too. It made me a little too _happy_."

She hugs him tight, she hugs him close, warmth corseting him all around in ways he has felt before. Hau comes from the other side, and somebody else, warm and pleasant, adds to the mount of hugs. Ilima is standing there, watching the scene attentively, so it has to be Moon.

Gladion has never been a fan of group hugs. He doesn't mind individual hugs when they are few and in between – like those he's had with Moon, the few with Lillie and the pair he's shared with Hau. They are all pleasant in different ways; Lillie brings him comfort, Hau brings him that tingly feeling of home and Moon brings him those two together, along with a pang of mischief and vaulted care. Individual hugs don't suffocate him and don't overwhelm him.

But _this_ group hug, though; that's something he _does_ need badly. And he leans against their touch in gratitude, staring at the letter with trembling hands. The ghost of a smile threatens to break through his features, but he swallows it with a sigh.

And then, splitting the tender moment, the congratulations and encouragement, the 'took them long enough' and 'I'm not gonna accept you as my boss', comes something loud from the sky; thunder rolls in the distance.

Lillie, recovering from her hiccups of emotion, peels herself off from Gladion to look at the sky. She's wiping a small tear off her eye as she speaks. "As much as we must celebrate this moment, we should maybe get going. We will not last for long here if we stay idle."

"I think a very bad storm is approaching us," says Ilima, calmly stepping towards Lillie and sweeping his hand up and down her back. Gladion sees Hau make a face; he thinks it might have to do with the weather, rather than Ilima's sudden touchiness. "We should take shelter. Haven't you brought tents with yourself?"

Three pairs of eyes snap in Moon's direction, who has strategically retreated from the hug to look around distractedly. "What lovely weather."

Lillie chuckles. "Don't think we don't know of your crimes, Moon. I believe you threw my things down the river somewhere close to here. Including a pair of tents that would be incredibly useful today."

"What, _here_? That's ridiculous." She looks around for exactly three seconds. Her eyes widen. "Holy shit, you're right. It was here, somewhere. My memory's foggy."

"No matter how foggy it is, you were the one to throw my bags down that river."

"To save our lives."

Gladion gets up from his spot, tucks the letter in his pocket – where he used to keep Lusamine's pendant – and tugs at her cheek simply to irritate her. It works wonderfully. "You threw it at an animal because you thought it was threatening us."

"It was an act of pure care for you three!" She grabs his wrist and pulls his hand off her face with a pout. "I refuse to atone for my deeds. The tents had to be sacrificed."

"Hey, I think we're fine!" everyone turns to Hau, who is looking over the shore, hands on his hips and leaning dangerously close into the waters. "I think the bags are still stuck in those rocks! They haven't moved an inch!"

It's amazing how Mother Nature will take it into her hands to fix most of Moon's fuckups, much like a pat on her head. Whether this is a blessing by Arceus or simple chance is unclear, but everyone is visibly happy to see the tents are safe and sound.

Of course, Moon isn't that happy. She looks compromised. She purses her lips. "How _wonderful_."

Lillie points at the green bags in the rocks. They are stuck in the middle of a segment of rocks that nearly crosses the river. The path looks wobbly, but Moon should make it out of there just fine. "You threw them in, you will have to take them out."

"You're talking me like I'm a puppy," Moon says as she obliges and begins to walk towards the makeshift stone path over the river. "I'm not very happy about that. I hope my discontent is clear."

"Do be careful, Moon," advises Ilima, watching her every move. "We wouldn't want you to slip and fall in."

Gladion instantly wants to correct him: Moon would never fall in unless she felt like taking a dip into the deadly cold waters of the river, and she will probably cartwheel her way in and cartwheel her way out; but she's quick to shoot down these allegations, twirling to face Ilima.

"Who do you think you're talking to, eh? I'm the headmistress of the Springblossom Academy! I'm gonna _fly_ over those!" Moon takes another step into the bridge, grinning. "Besides, it's not like I'm gonna– _ow_!"

 _Arceus fucking damn it_.

Gladion counts the steps: she slips ungracefully, hits her back, groans and flops into the roaring waters before catching the strap of the bags and unsurprisingly fighting her way out of there; but she won't leave without the backpack.

"Moon!" calls Lillie, taking a step towards the bridge before Ilima promptly stops her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, don't be ridiculous!" she winces as she tugs at the bags stuck in the rocks. Water is pushing on her back and surrounding her in foam. "I just gotta get this out and– _there we go_!"

Moon pushes the backpack out of the rocks just as the four warriors are about to go fetch her, but there is a new problem now: with the release of the bags and the fact that she's hugging it very tightly to her chest, Moon has nowhere to hold onto. She's being carried away by the river's currents _very_ quickly.

Lillie, Hau, Gladion, and Ilima rush along the shore, following her. Moon looks like she's having the time of her life. "I got the backpacks, guys! Isn't this awesome?"

"No, it's not!" yells Gladion. "Throw the backpacks at us! We'll catch them so you can grab onto something!"

"How am I supposed to throw them at you like _this_ , Gladbag?" Moon screeches, spinning like a teacup on a sink full of water. "I can barely see where I'm going, and if I let go of the bags, then they're gonna swim away and you're all gonna get pissy at me!"

"Dude, let one of your arms free and grab onto something!" screams Hau, hurriedly going ahead of the group to reach out. "Grab my hand if you can! Just try to swim here, for Arceus' sake!"

"I can't _swim_ there! This is literally spinning me around! I can barely tell where I'm going!" For one moment, she sinks to the waters, but they have no time to worry because she's up again in no time at all. "Have you guys ever heard of– of those haunted plushies that spin around to scare off nightmares? I'm one of those!"

"Yeah, but all you're giving us is a very undeserved headache!" Gladion chastises, and Moon frowns at him in particular.

"Shall I remind you that I'm gonna _freeze_ because you couldn't stand sleeping under the rain? You're the ones being unfair!" Moon tells them, wrenching an arm out of the water. The river, though, is going on so strong that any attempt to hold onto land is useless. "I can't grab onto anything! This is ridiculous!"

It seems like Ilima might have a solution for this, though, because he runs up to Hau and points to the river. "Hau, use your magic! Create a barrier of rock to stop her so we can catch her!"

"I don't need to be caught, you pompous Captain!" Moon yells despite the very evident peril she's facing. Gladion is surprised she isn't scared at _all_ , but that's just who she is. "There are fish in here!"

"You need our help, stop being so stubborn!" demands Lillie, pointing at a spot where some rocks were peeking through the waters. "Use those rocks to create a barrier! We can catch her if you trap her in!"

Gladion witnesses Moon sink to the bottom again, and it takes her a little more to surface this time. When she comes up, she's panting out and swallowing as much air as she can. Normally, rivers don't present these many structural issues, which means they are at a point of the river where it's about to change, so–

He hurriedly runs closer to the edge, where Moon can hear him. "Moon, you have to hang onto something! And I'm not joking around this time!"

"It's just a–"

"There's a _waterfall_ a few feet ahead of us!" Moon's eyes widen like saucers. He's relieved she can hear him through the growing rucks. "I'm not entirely sure how tall it is, but we can't chance it and have you falling! You need to save Hau some time and grab onto–"

Moon is quick to react, and chance puts a twig on her way, which she holds onto tightly while being pushed forward by the currents. She isn't moving anymore. Hau starts working on that rock barrier immediately.

With a roll of her eyes, Moon sighs. "You guys love making a big deal out of things like these, eh? I would've been fine!"

"Arceus, do you _ever_ shut up?" asks Gladion, more fond than angry.

She grins. "Not in your wildest dreams!"

When the situation is deemed to be controlled – namely, Moon being trapped like a fish in a net – Gladion and Lillie take the liberty of retreating to the woods under Ilima's request. He had made the very wise observation that it would be good to set up a fire so Moon could warm up and dry fast, and that call for Moon's safety has Gladion moving faster than ever.

Ilima's sudden concern for Moon does burden him unnecessarily. He's not sure why, but Lillie seems to know. "You look upset," teases she.

"I wasn't expecting Ilima to come along and literally change the whole dynamic of this trip," he grumbles. They find a neat spot among the trees that still lies close to the river, and he nods at her. "It's only three in the afternoon and Ilima has joined us, told me I might become an Emperor in the future, and Moon almost drowned two minutes ago. I'm allowed to be a little tense."

Lillie giggles. "You have a point." Gladion moves to look for twigs they could use. The Everspring Woods are constantly humid and trees are thick and majestic: twigs won't burn easily, and trees won't come down by free will without an ax. "What… do you think about that, though?"

"I wouldn't want her to drown, but she sure can be stubborn sometimes."

"Not that, big brother."

"Then? About what?"

Lillie's visage twists. She's uncomfortable. "About being the Emperor and… taking the throne from me."

She words it in a way that makes him feel guilty, almost. "I–"

"Alright, I worded that terribly," she admits, taking a seat on the stump of a tree. Gladion picks up a few twigs from the ground. Winter has ravished these lands without mercy. "I'm not sad about this at all, and I'm sure you know this already, don't you? I have been made aware that I'm not especially subtle about my feelings, sometimes."

He wants to deny that, but he can't, so he doesn't. Lillie being vocal about her feelings is good, great and amazing, so Gladion doesn't want to call her out for sometimes making faces about her duties or deliberately being a little too lenient when it came to delegating on others. Lillie has worked hard, but working hard won't make a terrible job any better.

He always considered that her behavior was just respite from all that had happened with Lusamine, but, looking at how happy she is now to know somebody could take the lead in her stead, that certainly had _not_ been like that.

Does he want to be the Emperor, though? "You haven't been… rude about it, if that's what you are concerned about."

"I'm not all that eager to leave, either, but I was hoping I didn't come across as rude. Wicke has hammered it in my head that I have to at least be _subtle_ – not in a bad way, though. Wicke would never do things like that," she says with a little dismay that Gladion has no time to point out. "In any case, what do you think about… well, the letter?"

Gladion has never had time to give the issue enough thought, despite having spent weeks studying for that very purpose. In his head, the charge of being an Emperor had been merely a consequence of his studying, which he had found equal parts heavy and interesting. When he gets into a task, he focuses on the process more than the goals, so he always makes sure to at least _enjoy_ what he's busy with. As a result, though, the goal of being an Emperor, while being the sole reason he began studying to begin with, had been lost amid the many things he's been busy with.

"I think it's a bit too soon to tell," Gladion says simply, shrugging. "There are many things to do and I honestly haven't even thought ahead of this trip. Maybe it's time I do that."

Lillie takes this as a sufficiently satisfying answer and proceeds to help him set up a fire. Gladion takes note of the small smile on her face, and that her moves appear to be lighter than seconds ago.

When Hau and Ilima make it to the makeshift campsite, the fire has been set up and Moon is trailing after them.

She collapses on the floor, groaning. "I'm _cold_." She unclasps the bags from her back and wiggles to set them free from her body. She must be _very_ cold to be admitting it out loud. "Take these and _never_ task me with carrying them ever again."

Lillie, grabbing Moon's arms to set her closer to the fire, giggles and takes the backpacks from her. "We will take that into account." She turns to Hau. "Help me set these up so we can get Moon into a bed soon. She might catch a fever if–"

"I'm _not_ gonna catch a fever because of this!" Moon sits up very quickly, expression disoriented. "I fell into a river, not a pool of ice, don't–!"

Something soft and warm lands on her arms and covers her legs, instantly nulling out the cold. Deft hands put it over her shoulders, too, frowning all the while as he covers each patch of glistening cold skin. Moon stares up at him, clueless, darting from his working hands to his eyes.

"Stop moving around or else you will get sick and if we can't afford letting you fall down a waterfall, you aren't allowed to get sick either."

Gladion stands up, smoothing some uneven wrinkles over the rhinestone blanket. "Really? Under what law, eh?"

"Under my own law." He grabs her beanie and yanks it down all the way to her nose, making her squirm in discomfort. "Just sit still and keep warm, okay?"

Ilima walks over to them before Moon can say anything else. "Gladion makes a great point. And if you want Lady Lillie to enjoy the trip, then you must keep yourself healthy," he says, squatting down to rub her shoulder. "And I assume you will want to be in great health to fight any opposition during our trip, correct?"

Gladion doesn't know what's worse: how close he is to her or how he's already included himself in the trip with that sneaky pronoun.

Moon seems to brighten at this, though, but with very ill grace. " _Fine_ , but then you better grab us food. I think most of what I had went down the river and Hau is gonna get hungry soon."

Among the hammering noises, Hau chirps up. "I'm _starving_! We gotta have some food soon!"

Right. It's been about half an hour since Hau last had food, and it had been a pretty scarce meal at that. Ilima nods his head. "I happen to have some fishing equipment with me. Maybe we could work with that."

"Hau _loves_ fish, so that will do," Gladion agrees, sparing one last glance at Moon. "And you, _don't_ move. I will know if you do."

She flutters her eyelashes at him. "I hope you know that as soon as we get to Zeffarei I'm gonna sue you for stalking me, and I'll kick your ass into jail."

Gladion decides to leave the conversation at that and follows Ilima out of the camping site and to the river bay. Without him realizing, Moon begins to move away from the fire and closer to Lillie and Hau; more specifically, she takes a seat on the tree stump, knees drawn to her chin as she observes both guys chat.

It's insane to think that he might someday become an Emperor. That Gladbag, the obnoxious emo swordsman with too many self-preservation kinks will be sitting on a throne and that he will be able to _boss_ her around– well, he also does that now, in a way, but it will someday be legal for him to do that stuff. She's so not ready for that.

But the thought of him being so powerful, though… she's happy for him, and observes him with that sentiment in mind.

"Gladbag is a softie for ya'."

Moon nearly falls off the stump in her surprise. Hammer in hand, he's looking at Gladion and Ilima too, except he looks mischievous where she's pleased and calm, for once.

She narrows her eyes in confusion. "Soft?"

"C'mon, it's _so_ obvious!" exclaims Hau with a big smile. "The cape thingy the other day," he uses the term 'the other day' very liberally, "then he escorted ya' out of Reikyuu in his arms! And look at you now, all wrapped up in your blanket! You look like a lil' marshmallow." Hau takes true glee in how Moon's face grows more and more confused as he goes on. "He's always had a kinda weak spot for you. You two act super tough but it's _obvious_ you got a thing going on."

Moon blinks several times, brow sunken. "Hau, I have _no_ idea what you're talking about, pal."

A pair of hands surge from behind her and push her a little to the side, and Moon, in her ball-shaped position, can do next to nothing to avoid her fall.

Out of nowhere, Gladion zooms into the scene, arms ready to catch her; he takes her into his arms and pushes her upright with a scowl of annoyance under the very wide eyes of his friends. "I told you to stay still."

"Arceus, I just moved _here_!"

"And you nearly fell!"

"Like, not even half a meter!" she insists, her lower lip popping out in vexation. "Stop worrying and go fish us some food, you edgy worrywart!"

He presses his hands on her shoulders like it will nail her into place. "Stay there and stop moving. Couldn't you two have caught her? I always have to do everything myself, don't I?"

Lillie gapes at him, eyes wide. Hau's jaw nearly hits the floor. "I… got nothin' to comment, dude."

Gladion merely nods and walks away from the scene with the same briskness he had come in with. Hau turns to her again and finds Moon to be just as surprised as Lillie and he are, if not more. The blanket is wrapped more thoroughly around her than before.

"Thanks for your help, Lillie." Their palms collide in a high-five. "I… wasn't expecting for him to illustrate my point, but you got it, right? He might be a grumpy pants, but he's kinda all over the place when it comes to you. It's super funny to watch, not gonna lie."

She rolls her eyes. " _Please_ , he also cares about you two a lot!"

"Of course he does, but it's a matter of difference," insists Lillie with a grin of her own. "He looks after us in a very… how did you say it, Hau? Gladionesque?" Hau chuckles and nods. "Yes. He looks after us in his very own way, but he's always had a strange predilection for you. You are always spinning around each other."

"Of course," Moon bites her inner cheek. "Because we're friends. We're super-duper good friends."

"I… that was not what I meant." Lillie walks around Moon to stand between her and her line of vision. She seems honestly driven to find answers to her questions, much like a puppy sitting on its owner's lap. "Just– tell us. What is going on between my brother and you?"

Moon smiles. "We're rivals."

Lillie blinks, unfazed. "Moon."

She accepts this uncalled for criticism. "We're very good friends."

Hau joins the chant. " _Moon_."

She squares her shoulders with a thin line as lips. "We're very good friends and that's a fact, I don't know what else you guys want me to say other than that. If you wanna hear me say that I, I don't know, _adore_ Gladbag and that I'm gonna obey him when he becomes Emperor, the answer is _hell no_."

"I mean, we were sorta seein' that coming," says Hau cheekily, beaming with a tease. "But we know it ain't that simple, right? You two have come a super long way."

Lillie nods eagerly, seeing her point be illustrated much more cleanly. "Yes. You have known each other for _ages_. You didn't meet through the most… conventional of ways either, right?" Moon smiles intensely, absolutely proud of how well that day went. "You must be very close, correct?"

Moon tilts her head. "I… don't know? We totally know each other well, that's for sure." Her eyes trail to Gladion again. His figure is hunched over itself, with a fishing rod on his hands as he talks idly to Ilima. She can barely hear what they're talking about, but he seems annoyed. "He's grown a lot since we met. He's still grumpy, but he's got a big heart. A heavy, edgy heart, at that."

Lillie bites her lip to conceal a giggle, one which Hau is properly letting out with bursts of laughter. She knows better than to let herself be carried away by Moon's sneaky changes of topics, so she leans a bit further to ask more inquiries.

"Okay, let me put it this way. When you are around my brother, what do you _exactly_ feel?"

Oh, no, Moon does _not_ like where this is going. The words 'exact' and 'feeling' are not in her lexicon under it's for very exceptional cases: exactitude shall be used to define her aim, and feelings for sickness and health. Lillie is offering her a perspective that Moon would loathe diving into because she's very aware that something is _off_ within her; addressing the big elephant in the room is much harder than ignoring it and the jittery butterflies it brings along.

That's right, butterflies. Moon feels very weird butterflies sometimes, or maybe it's ants. She's still convinced it's indigestion, it has always been indigestion when she touches him a little and he blushes, it looks _adorable_ on him. Moon likes seeing the frown fade in favor of that outrageous embarrassment of his. And to think she can provoke it feels pleasant, it feels nice. She enjoys knowing that little to no people but _herself_ can pull it off.

But Moon cannot think about that, _no, no, no_. If she thinks about it, she will end up imagining things, she will daydream like those girls in the books and things will become complicated, her subtle yearning for his presence and his smile and everything will see the light and she cannot afford that because– _because–_

"Dude, you're gonna combust. Your face is getting so red I could toast an egg on it," Hau teases, prodding her blistered cheek. "Is somebody thinking about–"

" _No_ ," she says all too quickly, and abruptly gets up from her stump. The blanket falls off her shoulders and she clears her throat. "I, uh, forgot something in the river. I'll be right back."

Moon marches away from view and closer to the river, into which she _jumps_ again with a groan of pain; and then, she's holding onto a rock while trying to swim upward, something akin to frustrated screams bubbling into the surface.

Gladion and Ilima quietly watch her try to drown herself to death. At this point, Gladion can't do anything else for her; but when Hau and Lillie walk close, wearing faces similar to mourning, he decides to ask. "What has gotten into her?"

Ilima decides to inquire about this, too. "She looks… in distress."

"She's having a hard time. Let her figure her shit out," Hau comments, nudging Lillie's side. "I can't believe we broke Moon. This is insane."

They bump fists and then walk away, cackling to each other. He's not sure he wants to know what happened back there, but he decides _that_ 's something he doesn't want to ask about.

* * *

"Moon, maybe you should get out of the water already."

A blur of black muddled with blues and greens moves from side to side. Her fingers, curled around the edge of the river, remain in place.

Crossing his legs, Gladion sighs. "I know you can hear me just fine. At least you could pull your face out so we can talk properly."

His call causes her head to push out of the waters. She's been swimming in the river for _hours_ now, and the waters that used to be wild have calmed down for the night. The sun sank long ago, but she remained in the river to allegedly 'burn off some seasonal jitters', whatever that could even mean.

Her face is slightly reddened by the undoubtedly cold temperature of the water, but she still looks at him with a raw ferocity that he can't quite shake off. "Is your hobby making my life miserable? I'm just taking a dip in the river!"

"Really? In winter?" She nods vehemently, blinking drops away from her eyes. "You're shaking."

She holds a finger up. "Only because this is a very thrilling experience," she excuses. Her nose wrinkles as she turns her head up to meet his gaze. "Besides, what are _you_ doing here? Are you bitter because I defied your law and took a bath?"

He bares his fangs to let her see his disgruntlement. It has little to no effect. "Hau and Ilima are making dinner and they asked me to call you over."

"Neither Ilima or Hau know how to cook."

"We're painfully aware of that," he concedes with a mirthless smirk. "None of us knows how to cook, but Ilima insisted he wants to help us out and… I don't know what his deal is. He's being too nice to us."

Moon smiles, sarcasm sinking her eyebrows incredulously. "Ilima has always been super nice. You're just constantly angry at him for whatever reason."

"I'm not _angry_ ," Gladion grumbles. He presses his chin on his hand. "He just looks too charming and nice. I don't trust people like him at all."

Moon beams at him. Her fingertips drum on the mossy grass of the shore. "But here we are, you and I! You trusted me right away, didn't you?"

He studies her quietly for a few moments, trying to gauge if she's being her usual sarcastic self or she's missed his point. He has no clue if she could be joking or now. "I… won't say anything else about that. I don't know how Little Miss Authority Issues can get along with him so _well_ , though."

He _definitely_ isn't a little irked by the fact, why would he? It's not like Ilima is going to hurt her, so he won't need to protect her from such hypothetical danger. Ilima doesn't seem manipulative either, and nor does he appear to hold any ill intentions other than probably serenading each of his friends into the illusion that he's the greatest, the nicest and the most charming.

Ugh.

Moon smiles. She props her arms on the shore and shrugs. "We just get along, I guess. He knows I'm strong and he's not that bad of a guy. Maybe a little too dashing in my opinion, but he's harmless."

"Is that all anyone needs to be your friend?"

She grins. "Why? Are you pissed that your rival has such low bars, Gladbag?"

They are _not_ going to thread into the path that are his personal opinions and what he thinks about Ilima and… whatever he's been trying to achieve with her lately. Gladion has seen him behave rather pleasantly with both Lillie and Moon, but it might be that his imagination has painted Ilima in a more flirtatious light than necessary.

"Whatever. Stop changing the topic." Gladion juts his chin in her direction. "You need to get out of there before you catch something bad. Why are you even bathing in there this late, anyway?"

He swears his eyes and ears might be deceiving him, but she grows nervous for a second. "I'm a lil' restless. It's been a very long day."

Her being restless isn't new, but the small bit of uncertainty in her voice _is_ , which alarms him. "You still need to get out of there. You might not care about your health, but I do– everyone does."

Moon's widening eyes blink at his slip up. Not even that last segment had made his words any less grossly caring, but she accepts the advice with unexpected ease. "Fine, fine. I'm getting out. Don't get cocky and sassy because I'm obliging this once."

"Don't worry, I know you better than you know yourself."

Moon rises from the riverbank effortlessly, dripping with water and releasing a sigh. Her hair is sticking to her cheeks and neck, and her clothes are ashamedly transparent– she's always wearing a black tank top underneath, to 'fight more comfortably if the baddies want a piece of me'.

She pulls her hair into her hands and squeezes the water out of her tresses. A grotesque amount of it drips out, making her wince. "Didn't know my hair could grab so much water. Oh, well."

"Good," Gladion takes a step towards her. "Let's get–"

Moon holds a hand up to stop him from getting any closer; much to his disbelief, Moon starts to stretch her arms and legs, twisting her body up, down, to the left and to the right. "I still got lots of energy to spare! I'm gonna go on a run now. Ready, set–!"

Right before she bolts off, he grabs her forearm and brings her back to where she used to stand. "No, you're not going on a run. Again, what made you so fidgety?"

"We have barely done any action today, I just wanna go for a run!" Moon digs the tip of her boot on the ground. "You guys can stay around, sitting and chatting, but I have lots of energy to spare and–"

Two hands square themselves on her shoulders. The action alone makes her stop moving suddenly. She blinks at his stern hands, warm and harsh, and then at his steel-worthy eyes, concentrating a hundred orders in a meaningful frown. "Can you _please_ stop moving? You're always energetic but not _this_ energetic."

Pursing her lips, she directs her eyes to the river. "I need a distraction."

His eyebrows rise. "What from?"

Her body lifts a few inches from the ground as she proceeds to elaborate, but it's as though she's run out of fuel halfway. Her wanton dissolves into a sigh. "I'm kinda nervous. And thinking about a lot of things. I just wanna forget about the…"

She trails off when she realizes that he's not listening– or, rather, he's rummaging through the backpack he left at the feet of a tree, and then coming back with his dear huge cloak, the one that looks ridiculously big on her. He opens it and holds it open for her to walk into.

"You should put something on first before you freeze into a little cube of ice. We can talk after that." Gladion takes a step forward, about to wrap it about her; Moon takes one step back, flinching. "What?"

"I, uh, I don't need it," she says briskly. She holds her hands up. "I'll pass. I'm fine. I don't need that stuff."

"Yeah, you do. If you don't put something on you will catch a cold– I know you're not cold but that's _not_ how the human body works. I have a doctor in my political family, I know about this stuff." Gladion is fully aware that Moon doesn't get along well with his self-preservation tactics, but this is basic health knowledge that she's for _whatever reason_ refusing to submit to. "Moon–"

"I don't need it." Her voice is a little softer. "All I want is to just go on a jog or something and I–"

Gladion, quick like lightning, takes a broad step in her direction and puts the cape over her shoulders, tying a knot around her neck deftly. He releases a sigh, ignoring the way her eyes are gazing into his, hesitant. "I know you think you're fine, but you need to just stay quiet for a second and get some clothes on, damn it." His words are a frustrated hiss.

Moon blinks away from him and looks at the snug cape wrapped around her. He can tell she _likes_ it just by how her pale hands are holding onto it, but something is off in the way she looks at it. Head tilted, he regards her in askance, but she doesn't address any of this until a few seconds have passed.

"I'm a little all over the place today," Moon sighs, mouth pulled into a thoughtful pout. "I don't need your pretentious cape all over me, but it will work, I guess. It's warm."

Gladion blatantly ignores the way his heart _squeezes_ when she wiggles her head a bit deeper into the fur surrounding her neck. He clears his throat and looks to his side. "You could have accepted it earlier. You're too stubborn for your own good."

He would expect a quip of hers to come through, a venomous insult that at this point is nothing more than the routine of their friendship; yet, nothing comes through. She stares at the fur around her neck aimlessly, albeit with a little frown. Gladion wants to ask what's wrong; it could be that she's about to sneeze but can't, or it could be that one of the fish in the riverbank has whispered the truth about the world in her ear and she's upset by it.

"Hey," Moon says, with a little more spirit now. "Do you know where I could get some sort of cure for _edgelorditis_? I'm a little indigested, I think." Her eyes are conflicted, but the thin veil of vexation in his eyes doesn't let him see it. "You had to put this on and add to my incoming cold, eh? You're _ruthless_."

Scoffing, he puts his hand on her lower back and gives her a little push. They begin to walk. "You're terrible. Next time I think about lending you my cape I will feed it to the wolves."

"It's your fault I ended up in the water," she says with a grimace. "I… That blanket gave me a tummy ache. My stomach feels weird."

"Really?" Gladion folds his arms, smirking. "Didn't you ask for it several times while we were traveling around the Aedus Dominion?"

And Moon turns to him as well, arms folded under his cape and tiptoeing to stare up at him. She doesn't realize that she's standing directly under his snarky gaze, his smirk widening with her intent. "Says the one who has been keeping it this whole time."

"Says the one that let me put it over her when she was cold and shivering after falling into a river."

"Says the one who forced me to get into the river to grab his tent!"

Gladion's smirk falters. "Hey, I didn't do that! You were the one who acted like an idiot and threw it to the water!"

" _Ahem_."

Moon and Gladion turn around to find out that they have an audience of two. Lillie is contently sitting down in front of one of the big tents with a book, drinking from a bottle of water while Hau and Ilima eat by the fire, smiling at the bickering due with equally shameless expressions on their faces.

Gladion takes one cautionary step away from her, realizing that they had gotten a _little too close even though that hadn't been that bad actually_. "You truly look soaked, Moon. It's good that our local Prince Charming Gladion assisted you this once, correct?"

Moon's left eyebrow twitches. She fires all her irritation at Hau. "When did you teach him how to _tease_? He used to be pure and uncorrupted. You've destroyed Zeffarei's main backbone."

Hau grins. "Dude, you two are gonna end up beating the shit out of each other if you don't chill."

"Yeah, Gladbag, you gotta chill," says Moon, bringing a dismayed hand to her forehead, snickering only for him to see. "You don't wanna punch the living lights out of a poor sick woman like me, right?"

"Honestly, I do."

Moon makes a face. She walks away from him and sits down right before the fire, expression melting into bliss as she warms herself up by the flames. The cape is a halo around her body. "Warm. It's so warm. Can I sleep here?"

"I don't think that would be very healthy," comments Lillie, pointing to one of the two tents they have set up. "We were talking about how we will organize the night. I think the five of us can sleep in these tents, though some will be more squished than others."

Moon perks up at this. "I can keep watch outside and liberate a space so I can just be cozy by the fire. I love sleeping outside anyway, so..." She closes her eyes. "Warm…"

"There's no way we're letting you keep watch, dude," says Hau sincerely. "You look like you're gonna fall asleep on the spot."

Ilima chuckles at the scowl she sends him. It could very well bury Hau ten feet under if looks were to kill. "I hate to say this, but Hau makes a great point. I had already offered myself to keep watch as to fight any Kandrus guards that might come by, so we have a deal in that department already."

"Oh, that's wonderful. Amazing. You guys are great." Moon falls to her side, curled into a ball. "Good job."

Gladion blinks down at her and gives her a soft kick. "Don't fall asleep on the grass. You're not a grasshopper."

"I might become one if I wish for it hard enough," she slurs into the fur.

"We have to decide how we're gonna sleep, too." Hau rubs the back of his neck. He leaves the paper wrap he's using as a plate on the ground, his food still unfinished. "Lillie had suggested sleeping by Moon but we're kinda scared of you having some illness and, uh, we know you're super not-tired, but we are, so–"

"You will sleep by Lillie," Gladion looks down again to the nearly asleep creature at his feet. "I will sleep by the sleepy snuggle monster here."

"What? That's insulting. Sleeping by you should count as torture in the Aedus law." Moon turns her head to him, squinting in disdain. "I'm gonna sue you to the authorities."

"Moon, we have slept side by side a bunch of times already," he deadpans, squatting to meet her eyes. "And you're in no state to complain considering you're a factory of pneumonia and colds. We should have thrown you to the river and we would have eradicated the problem from the get-go."

She sheds a wobbly smile. "You guys love me too much to ever throw me into the river."

"In any case," coughs Ilima. Hau and Lillie are a mess of stifled giggles behind books and hands, "it would be nice for our dear Moon to get some sleep as quick as possible. She certainly looks like she could use some rest. If Gladion poses a problem as a roommate, I can very well switch places with him if you so desire, Moon."

Gladion's eyes narrow in questioning. Ilima flashes him a wide, nearly _knowing_ smile, veering in his direction smugly. He still wants to believe Ilima is not trying to flirt with Moon to please her, but it might be that he's doing it to piss Gladion off; in any case, it's hard to believe he's innocent of his crimes.

Moon, however, shrugs any implications off like they are feathers. "Arceus, you two are equally as bad. It would be much easier for me to stay outside and–"

Somebody rips the entrance to one of the tents open. The deep blue chamber is held open by none other than Gladion himself, pointing at the entrance meaningfully. "Slug monster, get in."

Lillie erupts into a fit of laughter at the sight of Moon's wide eyes and mouth. "What? It's like, seven in the evening!"

"If you don't get in you will get a fever and I'm _not_ going to have you crawling around the Dominion when we have guards on our backs," bites Gladion, watching her as she uncurls herself and gets up from the ground, wobbling. "Again, you might not care about you getting sick, but _I_ do."

"I'm not sick! _You_ got edgelorditis and nobody's batting an eye! Look at how pale and fret-ish you're getting!" Moon exclaims, pointing at him to emphasize her point. Gladion balls his hands into fists. "Besides, because I care about _your_ health, you should go in first!"

"No, you go in first. Get in!"

Ilima leans close to Hau from the side, biting into his meat. "Are they competing over who is the most polite out of the two?"

"No, man," Hau says softly, watching the scene with great amusement, "they're just stupid."

Moon drills her feet to the ground. "No, _you_ go! You might stab me from behind to get rid of me if I do as much as turn around!"

"And if _I_ turn around you will probably lock me in and throw the tent to the river with me inside." He's clearly joking, but judging by Ilima's wide eyes, he believes this story to be viable. "Again, get in already."

Moon folds her arms in defiance. " _Make me_."

Oh, no. His expression shifts from annoyance, exhaustion, and confusion to a thin spark of challenge. She waits for him to make a move, smugly tapping her foot on the ground and pushing her lips like she will win over him this time, daring him to make a move and possibly cross the delicate lines of banter they have sketched between them– all of this in front of their three suspecting friends, all of them waiting with bated breath.

Little does she know, he's well over conventionalisms as much as she is, so he acts.

Gladion wordlessly walks over to her and pulls her over his shoulder with a surprisingly smooth motion, causing her to gape. "What do you think you're _doing_?"

Behind him, Hau is laughing his ass off, slapping his lap as he grabs Ilima's shoulder for support. Gladion merely pats her back. "Told you we would do things the hard way if you don't start looking after yourself."

" _Arceus_ , I'm fine!" she insists, yet doesn't try to wiggle off his hold. "I'm not a sack of potatoes, you jerk! I'm gonna kick your ass out of this planet tomorrow when we wake up!"

"Moon, I doubt you will even be able to get up when you rise tomorrow," comments Ilima, chuckling. "Not to mention that Gladion will have probably locked the tent so you cannot escape his scope."

Moon blinks, considering the possibility. "Is he right?"

Gladion shrugs. "It's a very good idea. If that's all that it will take to keep you healthy and not a complaining mess, then I will assume all responsibilities."

"You're _impossible_! I should be the one keeping watch, I love sleeping out of the tent anyway!" she bites, kicking a fist on his back. "What's with this way of carrying me around anyway? I'm a fair lady with standards, you know!"

Lillie purses her lips in amusement. "Oh, don't worry, Moon. This is not the first time he has carried you this way."

Moon's eyes widen. " _What_ –"

"We're going to sleep now," Gladion announces, hiding the evident rosy burn on his cheeks and ears, but at least he can say that last part is because of the cold. "If you guys find my corpse floating in the river tomorrow, you know why."

Moon's muffled complaints are the last thing they hear from them as Ilima, Lillie, and Hau burst out laughing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yo girl is out of the hospital and I shall celebrate by updating and simply stating that FUCKING FINALLY ONE SIDE OF LONASHIPPING HAS CONSCIOUSLY CAUGHT FEELSIES AND well I mean she almost drowned herself because ya know she doesn't know how to deal w it but BRUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
> 
> long chapter is long and it won't be the last longus chapterus in this ficus so stay tuned
> 
> I mean Gladion is getting there certainly but we finally have sth out of the way PLUS WE HAVE ILIMA ON BOARD HELL TO THE FUCKING YEAH FRIENDS. he's gonna stay for most of what's left of this arc and he's gonna torment Gladion forever. you'll see how
> 
> "My past has shaped me into the woman I am today. You have to accept the whole package if you wanna travel with me, Lils." / "It's a very heavy and annoying package," Gladion says to nobody in particular. / A rock crosses the distance and hits him square on the forehead." - these two I-
> 
> guys Gladion is gonna be an Emperor. from rags to riches. from edge to glory. my uwus are spilling. Moon the Power Teacher and Gladbag the Emperor what a power couple they'd be-
> 
> A pair of hands surge from behind her and push her a little to the side, and Moon, in her ball-shaped position, can do next to nothing to avoid her fall. / Out of nowhere, Gladion zooms into the scene, arms ready to catch her; he takes her into his arms and pushes her upright with a scowl of annoyance under the very wide eyes of his friends. "I told you to stay still." / "Arceus, I just moved here!" / "And you nearly fell!" - MADE MYSELF SQUEALHBUIDOKSLPX
> 
> "Oh, don't worry, Moon. This is not the first time he has carried you this way." / Moon's eyes widen. "What–" / "We're going to sleep now," - they are married
> 
> NEXT TIME WE'RE GONNA DO SOME COOKING LADS
> 
> AND MORE LONASHIPPING AND MOON IS FUMB SHENANIGANS
> 
> STAY TUNED /FINGERGUNS


	10. Spoon and Knife

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion and Moon sign in to a cooking contest.

The few following days are surprisingly devoid of any sickness, other than Ilima's presence, which Gladion very gladly considers a bother on its own. Moon had been right when she said that her body is resistant as steel, and while she had murmured to herself that Gladion was being stubborn and a worrywart, he's aware that he's saved her from a fever and a few coughs.

They had slept side by side, but they broke a rule: instead of sleeping back to back, Moon had slept on her side looking at him while Gladion had slept on his back. He hadn't realized that it had been that way until he woke up the next morning to a sleeping Moon, still buried in his cape that _looks so inexplicably cute on her he doesn't understand the science around that phenomenon but it's whatever._

She had handed him the cape a while after that and they never commented on the issue ever again. They had decided to go back to Gemstone Village in gratitude for Ilima's overnight services, as the Captain had shown interest in seeing what is considered to be the Kandrus Empire's capital.

They decided to resort to the same hotel as usual up the hill that overlooks the whole village, the lake, and the fishermen. The village is not as snow-capped as it previously had been, but the blizzard had left wastes of snow at its wake that Lillie is still rejoicing over, playing in a snowball fight with Hau and Ilima while Gladion has a cup of coffee at the terrace of the tea shop.

Moon had been engaging in that fight until she pads over to him with a mysterious look on her face. He wonders what she could be up to now; is she planning to kill another evil mastermind? Does she want to steal a relic from a temple? Does she want to set a rich state to fire? The possibilities are endless.

Instead, she says the following, "So," she takes in a deep breath, "there's gonna be a pretty big contest here. A cooking contest."

Gladion isn't sure where she could be going with this. "Yeah."

"They're gonna give out a pretty big prize."

"... Yeah."

Moon's smile increases and grows into her cheeks. "So we gotta go."

"Hell _no_."

As though she had predicted his refusal to participate, Moon jumps into the cafeteria's veranda and puts her arms on his legs, leaning in to look at him in the eye. She has freckles of snow all over her cheeks. He's tempted to brush the flakes off her skin.

"Listen, this is a golden opportunity!" Moon insists, pouting her lips. "It will be lots of fun! There's gonna be lots to eat and lots to do!"

Gladion clears his throat. "First, get your hands off my knees. You're cold." Moon obeys, probably thinking he will give in to her antics. "Second, why do _I_ need to follow you along? I'm reading a book, you see."

Her eyes trail down to the book he has in his hands, which will deceive her into believing he's reading a simple title-less book when, in reality, he's reading that damned book from the Karee Empire that he can't stop devouring like the Aedus-blooded bookworm he is. He has cleverly bought a new casing for this book to cover it, though it's a shame because the title had looked beautiful on the leathery surface.

At least Moon doesn't look suspecting, but she still seems curious. "You've been sitting there for ages. I get your love for books but if you're gonna spend your holidays reading, we're gonna have a problem."

He chuckles. "What will you do about it? Rat me out to Wicke?"

Now, that's a great idea that he _shouldn't_ have said. Moon grins. "Maybe. She might be lurking from some hidden corner of this village for all we know, so I'd drop that book if I were you." Sighing, he bends the little upper corner of the page he's in – Moon cringes at that – and puts it on the table beside him. Moon takes a peek at the bare, seemingly title-less volume. "What are you reading, anyway? Some guide on how to stop being bitter?"

Before she can reach out and confirm her theories, he hurriedly grabs it and shoves it into his backpack at a staggering speed, leaving Moon to blink and gape.

"None of your business. It's… personal stuff." His grumbling succeeds in making her give it up, so she stands idly and waits for him to speak. "I would even argue that spending my day here will be much less troublesome than going with you."

Moon puffs her cheeks and folds her arms, giving him a glare that could turn him to ashes if she _was_ angry. "Very funny, Gladbag, but I'll just say that I'm gonna go anyway. There's a very fancy prize being given out and I'm gonna win no matter what it takes, so…"

The gray color of her traveling cloak gives her the appearance of a deranged hermit, but he knows very well that's not the case. The grin twitching at her lips and the crinkle of her eyes make him believe she has a firm reason to go there, intriguing him.

"What's so important about this contest that _you_ have to go and why do _I_ have to go with you and not, you know, the others?"

" _Please_ , I can do just fine on my own. I'm gonna win no matter what gets in my way." Which translates that she will set the contest's facility on fire if necessary. The wicked spark in her eyes tells him that much. "The rest are busy playing snowball wars. I'm a mature and independent woman. I'm an adult. I have no place in that."

"Weren't you swimming in a river at seven on the eve–"

Moon grabs a handful of snow and quickly forms it into a ball, hitting him square in the face with it. He should have seen it coming. "That's irrelevant to the case," she says, removing the snow from her lithe fingers. "I hate to admit this, but you're not… terrible at cooking, I think."

That's pleasant to hear, considering what little he knows about cooking stands out among all the people around him that know next to _nothing_ about cooking. There is this little demon on his shoulder that constantly looks at her, and then at the rosy-blond soldier that is currently admiring her from afar. Gladion can't understand why Ilima pisses him off so much lately, but he guesses he just has to get used to his presence.

"What about Ilima, though?" Moon tilts her head, clearly confused. He hasn't asked it with any sort of spite– he genuinely means it. "Doesn't he know how to cook?"

"I think he does, but I know I won't have as much fun with him as I will with you."

Gladion flashes her a smirk. "Why, scared he will put the handcuffs on you?"

"Not at all. He knows very well I can break handcuffs easily– we've already established that" she explains. "In any case, you're probably gonna put up the least of a fight if you tag along– _or_ , you'll put up a super big fight and I'll have fun pissing you off. It's a win-win situation."

"Only for you," he comments, leaning back on his seat. He hadn't realized how uncomfortable the seat is until now; the book had absorbed him and as always, Moon is there to break his little bubble of peace. "What do I have to win, though? What's this prize you're talking about?"

Moon's eyes brighten as he mentions the word _prize_ ; she hurries to him and hops on the table where his book used to be, swinging her legs over his thighs. She leans in like this matter is top secret. "Okay, there's this super rare prize being given out. I think there are a few, actually, but I've heard they're also gonna hand out, guess what? That's right, _gems_. And you know how much I love gems."

Gladion drags a hand down his face, chuckling. "Of course, it had to be that."

She holds her hands up. "Hold up, I'm not done! I don't even care about the gems– at least, not primarily." She grins cheekily. "They're also gonna hand out a very, _very_ expensive hairpiece made and designed by none other than Mina Kahalea and Olivia!"

He doesn't recognize that first name, but he does know the second one. His eyes widen. "Wait, Olivia as in the actual Saint Riftwalker?"

"Now, _that's_ what I wanna find out. They just said that some woman named _Olivia_ had made it, and I know for a fact that Olivia is a lot into gems and mining and all that stuff. Kukui told me that Nanu and Olivia used to be hiking buddies– but that's a story I didn't have time for back then, though I'd _love_ to know about it now. What a shame," Moon sighs, head lowering in shame. "In any case! I need that hairpin really bad."

Gladion scoffs, sparing her a doubtful yet light look. "What for? Do you want to sell it to buy you a pair of daggers? There's no way I'm going to disobey Wicke this time."

Moon drawls out a wide smirk, leaning forward to stare at him. "Oh? Is somebody scared of a little doctor?"

"C'mon, you know she _is_ intimidating. At least to some degree."

"You know what? I'll give you that, she's kinda creepy. But that was _not_ my point!" Moon leaps off the table and points a finger at him. "You're coming with me. If you want to. Which I know you do."

In all honesty, he doesn't, but he's never been known for backing off from a challenge, especially if Moon is involved. A part of him is always down to both antagonizing and helping her, though this time it's more a case of him preventing that she breaks a table or poisons the other participants for the sake of a prize. He's aware she would _never_ go that far, but he knows that's a terrifyingly low bar for her to clear.

He tells himself he's going with her for damage control, though a part of him also knows she will probably make the whole experience ten times better. Or worse. That's always a surprise with her.

"I still don't know why you are so fixated on that– hairpin? Did you say you want a hairpin?" Moon nods vehemently. "You never wear hairpins. You never even put your hair up."

"Warriors have no time to care about their hair. It's combed and brushed, and it needs no more," she says pleasantly, turning pensive afterward. Her lips purse themselves in, and she entwines her hands on her lap. "The hairpin isn't for me. It's for Lillie."

That confession catches him off-guard. "For Lillie? What's the occasion?"

"This is gonna sound ridiculous," if she says that, then she's probably right, "but I wanna help her dress up nicely for the festival at Altaria Bay because I have _plans_ there." A toothy grin spreads her lips. "And I'm gonna need your cooperation."

Now, if her intentions are so healthy and pure, he doesn't have much of a problem helping. However, right as he starts considering tagging along, a very big problem comes to mind. "Won't there be Kandrus guards there? We committed a crime less than a week ago. There's no way they will let us in."

"Don't worry about that." Her eyes sharpen as she begins to scheme his demise and next headache. "I got a great idea."

 _Arceus damn it_.

* * *

Gemstone Village has a big abandoned palace outside that Gladion doesn't understand. He doesn't understand why it's abandoned, because it seems to have been constructed not a long time ago and it appears to be fully furnished; at least, the gardens are correctly cut and no weeds are harming the beauty of the facility.

He doesn't understand why it's so far away from the actual village and into the fields close to the river in the south. These fields are nothing alike Lunaria Plains, though, and in his humble opinion, if a field is not going to be as pretty as that, then one shouldn't bother building anything resembling royalty on it.

And worst of it all, he doesn't understand why there's a big, flashy stand full of lights and gigantic disguise heads with mushrooms. Some of them are just red, flat mushroom tops and white dots scattered all over.

When Gladion asks Moon about it, standing at a wise distance from the palace's security and its crowd wanting to get in to watch the contest, she points at the mushroom heads. "I heard the Pongii are the favorites each year to win. They're our direct enemies." Moon balls her hands into fists. "And also a _great_ way for us to disguise ourselves."

Gladion raises an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Give me your cape and that ugly pink blanket of ours. I have a plan."

Gladion hesitantly hands the requested items to her and Moon proceeds to put up the worst disguise in the history of mankind. She puts his cloak around her, making no comment on how big it looks on her, and then ties their blanket around her head to make a turban. The rhinestones make her appear mystical and dignified.

When Moon walks up to the Pongii merchandise stand, Gladion makes sure to hide so neither the authorities or the people passing by think he has anything to do with her. Her ability to disguise herself with such ease still surprises him.

Moon holds her hand up to greet the clerk, slow and elegant. "Good morning, fellow worker. I would like to purchase two of those shirts."

"Good morning, miss!" The clerk does not comment on Moon's odd appearance, but simply holds up two of the shirts as to ask for a size. Moon points at the biggest one and the smallest one, and the clerk proceeds to fold it for her. "I assume you must be here to watch the annual cooking contest, huh?"

"Not at all, dearie." Moon holds her hands up and wiggles her fingers. "I am a reputable oracle from a very faraway country. I have come here to let anyone make use of my abilities for the charitable price of a coin."

Gladion facepalms. There she goes, scamming people again. "Oh, that makes sense! I thought you were merely dressed up like that because of the cold."

"Absolutely not. I wear these clothes to be comfortable but also connected with my chi at all times." She holds up a finger. "I also need to wear dark clothes to draw all the ghosts of this place to me. They could harm the little children and lure them away with their balloons."

Nor the clerk of Gladion knows what she means with that, but maybe she had said it with that purpose. "I see… that certainly sounds terrifying." The clerk hands her the shirts. "Thinking about it, haven't we seen each other before? Your face sure seems familiar."

Moon shakes her head, nonchalant. "Not at all. You must be mistaking me for another one of my crew."

"Oh, I see. Would you want anything else?"

Moon points a finger to the mushroom-shaped hats hanging from the wall. They have the ratio of very large picture hats. "I would like two of those, please."

The clerk hands her the hats. They look heavy and pricey. Gladion doesn't catch how much everything sums up to, but he witnesses Moon paying for it with actual money, which is new and absolutely mind-blowing for him. This is one occasion where Moon could have easily stolen it, but she hadn't.

"In any case, I hope you enjoy the show, miss. I wouldn't mind you coming by later to read my future." The clerk turns around for a moment. "I might have a coin or two here, so maybe if you have time now we could…?"

When the clerk turns again to Moon, she's long gone with the hats and merchandise, having rushed to Gladion behind a tree to hand him the overly complicated disguise. She throws him the cape, and when he gets it off his face, she's already wearing one of the Pongii shirts. The cheap garment is blue and reads _'There's not mush-room for doubt with us!_ '

Ugh.

"Get that mug off your face, we got business today." Moon strategically messes with her hair in a way that it's covering her eyes like an overly long fringe, and then puts on her hat to encase the hairdo. She's the book definition of a lost tourist. "I can't see a thing."

"Congrats." Gladion puts the shirt over his black one. The long sleeves run down to his wrists, while the Pongii one only reaches his elbows. "You sabotaged yourself."

"Don't be ridiculous, I just don't want them to look at me in the eye and read my soul. Look at those guards. They're so idle they could as well be ghosts in an armor." She's kind of right. Excepting one guard giving out tickets and brochures, the other guards are completely still. "You're gonna have to guide me around like the gentleman you are. Hand on my back, no touchy business. I'll chop your hand off."

"With what daggers? I think Wicke disarmed you."

"Oh, you're so lucky she did, otherwise I'd have chopped off your bangs too." Moon sticks out her tongue. "Speaking of bangs, you gotta tuck them back or something. They stand out more than the mushroom hats do."

Gladion tries to tuck the uneven bangs behind his ear, but it's no use; they spring back to his face as usual. "Don't you have one of those bobby pins of yours? The ones you keep on your bra?"

He curses. Why did his brain think _that_ was a good thing to say? Fortunately, Moon makes nothing of it. "I don't have any with me now, I lent them to Lillie to do some stuff with Ilima's hair." She steps close, hands suspended. "Lemme help, then."

Moon's touch on his hair isn't as unpleasant as it should be; she has no right to be so good with these things when she literally can't see a damn thing with her hair over her eyes. Gladion would go out of his way to brush her bangs off her eyes. He has a strong urge and desire to do so.

Before he can act on it, though, Moon is pinning back his hair and quickly putting on the ridiculous hat. "Good. No guards will recognize us now." She turns around to face the exit of their hiding spot behind the trees. "Guide me forward. I'll do the talking."

Gladion is glad she's considering his social constipation. He has no issue talking to the enemy during fights nor talking to authorities in any scenario, but this is a mix of the two that he hasn't quite encountered before. At least Moon is shameless enough to walk past the clerk from earlier, humming to herself a song he _swears_ he's heard before.

He pats her on the back to indicate that they are here. Moon holds a hand up, excited. "Hiya! We are here to participate in the cooking contest!"

The guard, as expected, eyes the two like he's seen them step out of a spaceship. His eyebrows disappear under the helmet of his uniform. "That's… right. Can I ask why you would dress like this?"

Gladion clears his throat. "We are both rather… anxious individuals, and the thought of our friends seeing us participate in tandem really embarrasses us."

The guard grins, swallowing Gladion's well-manufactured line to the last comma. "Aha! You two must be dating, right? You must be here because of the Lovers' Day contest in couples!"

A second passes. Moon and Gladion share a look of absolute panic.

 _What_.

Today is… Lovers' Day? As in today? This current day? That makes absolutely no sense. Gladion isn't keen on keeping track of days passing when he's busy, and evidently, neither is Moon. Her face is an absolute poem of cluelessness. She might not know about romance, but everyone and their mom know about Lovers' Day.

Moon should know, especially; Lovers' Day is a tradition exported from the Karee Empire, as Faba had once informed him along with a bunch of petty arguments about why such a day is a waste of time. Lovers' Day has a set of traditions that Gladion has read in his trusty book, but he never thought he would stumble with such a circumstance ever in his life.

He thought he was just gathering theoretical knowledge. Gladion never expected to put it to practice in the real world.

The Kandrus guard laughs heartily. "You lovebirds must be taking today very seriously if you have come with matching outfits! That's very cool of you!" Gladion turns back to this man, too happy to see a 'couple' like them around here. "Normally, couples come in matching colors and not much more. That's total commitment!"

Moon, as the opportunistic little shit she is, seizes the bait and loops her arm around his a tad too violently. "Yeah, we're an item! We're here for that sweet contest, right, _darling_?"

He hadn't expected to have to pretend to be Moon's boyfriend for the second time, either.

"Knew it! No normal pair would ever wear a costume that bad if it weren't for true love!" That's a very dubious yet fair statement. Gladion supposes. "You came right when we have the last spot at the cooking contest available! Do you know where it will be held? I don't think there are any of my buddies to guide you around inside, so…"

Gladion nods. "We will be fine, thank you. My _sweetheart_ and I will manage just fine." He hates how Moon is very quietly snickering to herself at his fumbling. "Do we need any sort of passes?"

"Just take these tickets and they'll lead you right in, lovebirds." They are given a pair of papers colored red and golden, a little more tout than the rest. "Go right ahead! The contest will begin in a few minutes!"

Gladion and Moon thank him for his service and brush past, arms still looped around one another before they walk deep enough into the castle for them to lose sight of any authorities.

Moon wrangles her arm out of Gladion's elbow and removes the hat. Gladion pays shameful close attention to how her hair swishes as it is set free. "Arceus, that was bad. I'm getting tired of people thinking we're a thing. Maybe we should buy an engagement ring to make all of this a lil' bit more bearable."

"From fake dating to fake marriage?" Gladion removes the hat as well, combing his hair into place. Sweet familiar chaos is back on his face. "You really like to one-up yourself with your stunts."

"Now, our biggest stunt lies in there, Gladbag. We're about to face off against probably the best chefs in the Empire," Moon explains, walking backward and deeper into the wide hallway of the palace. "The Pongii are extremely skilled chefs and hunters. They can make a delicious dish out of absolutely _anything_. They're better at the knife than me and that says a _lot_. I have been there a couple of times and their food is…"

She rolls her eyes in manufactured bliss, biting her lip. Gladion has heard bits and pieces about Pongii food. All he knows about that very small yet famous clan– town? Village? Is that they are incredible hunters. They are small and ridiculous-looking, but they might as well kill you and cook you for dinner if you laugh at them. Moon has often described them as the 'cute, peaceful mushroom guys', but the rumors color them as anything but that.

They find their assigned pavilion quickly. Within the facility there are plenty of places to go to, as this palace seems to have been refurbished as a museum of some sort. Letters and bright arrows are pointing to different gardens and pavilions, and the one they are destined to is likely to be the biggest within the palace.

When they walk in, they are welcomed by the sunlight streaming through the glass roof and the crowd sitting on the wide and tall stairs that surround the room. It's the only room he's seen to have different floorings and walls than the rest of the palace; where there used to be marble, now there is brick and wood. This had been built just for this day's festivities.

There are small kitchens scattered around the pavilion. They are equipped with the bare minimum, but even the actual bare minimum is more than enough: the counters are made of marble and wood, and there are a few fridges with an oven and a cast iron on top. There is an assortment of tools hanging from a rack attached to the tall ceiling that Gladion doesn't understand, but the Pongii seem to.

Handing the ticket to one man at the entrance, Gladion observes their direct competition. The creatures stumble around organizing their utensils with precision and intent that only fully-fledged chefs would achieve.

Moon, on the contrary, picks up a spatula from their kitchen station and bangs it on the counter. "Stainless steel. Nice." Gladion walks over to her, leaning against the counter as she surveys their competition. "There's not many people around here. I had expected it to be packed with people."

There are only three other competitors other than Gladion and Moon, all of them being couples as mandatory. There's a Pongii couple, a couple of people that clearly must be from somewhere else, and another that Gladion couldn't care less about because they look like children, at least from behind–

Moon nearly throws her whole weight over the countertop. "Hapu, Dawn!"

The two turn around with equally surprised expressions. Great. Not only will they be facing off against a race of world-wide known chefs, but also two actual Saint Riftwalkers.

Hapu waves at Moon politely. "Good morning, you two. You look as healthy as ever, I would say. It certainly has been a while since we last saw each other." Dawn nods in agreement with this greeting, and they walk over to Moon and Gladion with smiles on their faces. "I am surprised to see you participating. This is a contest destined to couples, is it not?"

Both warriors raise an eyebrow at her contradiction. "But you are not going out with Dawn, right?"

Dawn knowingly smiles at them. "Are you two going out?"

Moon and Gladion share a glance. Then, they sigh. Hapu smirks. "You cannot hide anything from the knowing eyes of saints like us. Please, do not let others hear about our status, though. Kukui is severely vexed at Dawn for wanting to come here. It is certainly hazardous for figures like ours to appear in public like this."

Dawn plays with the hem of her red winter coat as she says this. "I heard there would be a theme centered in deserts and I needed to come. I didn't want to drag you along with me, Hapu."

"It is fine. I needed a little break from our duties myself." She laughs merrily, but for some odd reason, the serious sink of her eyebrows remains unchanged. "In any case, we should position ourselves. The contest is about to begin; we shall catch up later, fellow warriors."

As Hapu and Dawn walk to their respective kitchen stations, Gladion sighs. "If our possibilities were low earlier, it's safe to assume they're below our feet now."

Moon slaps her hands on his shoulders, attempting to be reassuring. She whispers. "Don't be so negative! They might be _saints_ and all that, but that doesn't mean they can cook any better than us!"

"Moon, our standards are very low-hanging fruit for absolutely _anyone_ in this room." He doesn't dismiss how her hands tighten around his shoulders. "You exploded an oven without even trying while making _bread_."

"That was one time only," she insists. "And I promise to be more careful this time."

"Look, let's make things easier." Gladion gently pries her hands off his shoulders and decides to overlook the little pout she offers at this. "You won't step close to the oven, and I won't step close to the knives. I am prone to cutting myself with those anyway."

Moon holds out a hand, nodding. He gives it a vigorous shake. "But for your information, I'm sure these ovens would hold up much better than that one."

A loud bell rings from the end of the room before Gladion can reply to that. A man in a bright, obnoxious suit holds up a notepad and waves at everyone as the crowd begins to clap all around the contest. He is wearing a tie and his arms are open like he's trying to swallow the whole world and make it revolve around himself. He has this arrogant, obnoxious aura that already pisses him off.

"Good morning, fellow kitchen _aficionados_! Today we are holding the Annual Winter Kitchen Stand-Off Deluxe for Lovers Day! Please, give us a round of applause!" As the claps subside, the presenter walks down a pair of steps. "Why don't we get to know our contestants before we proceed with the theme of the contest, then? Let us see what our lovebirds have in store for us!"

The presenter is surprised to see Hapu and Dawn standing as a couple, though Hapu quickly clarifies that they had been allowed to pass under the pretense that Dawn is her adoptive sister. It's good to know that not only Moon and Gladion can and _have_ lied through their teeth to get here.

"You two certainly are an uncanny duo," he says, a touch preoccupied. "Where do you come from? And how old are you?"

"Now, that last question is _rude_ , dear presenter," chastises Hapu, arms folded. "In my land, we know that asking ladies about their age is the epitome of ungentlemanly behavior. I will have you know that men are punished for such mannerisms with pain and fire."

Deciding that the quick interview needs no more answering, he rushes to Moon and Gladion. His posture straightens immediately at the sight of two normal people with normal pretenses and normal faces. _Oh, how wrong he is_. "You two look like a young, happy couple!"

Moon tilts her head with a too-cute-to-be-genuine smile. "We're very happy and very much in love. He's brought me here for our anniversary, isn't that right, _darling_?"

For someone as ignorant about romance and relationships she sure likes to play with the endearments and lovesick voice a lot. There is a thin glassy layer of jest to her words that gives the deal away; the presenter doesn't notice it, simply focuses on Gladion as he gives her the best enamored gaze he can put up. "Of course, _sweetheart_. Only the best for you."

The audience dissolves into a fit of 'aww's and 'eep's while Moon and Gladion stare at each other intensely, as if about to partake in the most intense endearment battle of history. Their words are artificial, but the intent isn't. Gladion would never call Moon _that_ , and Moon would never talk like she's got sugar instead of blood pumping through her veins.

"My, what a lovely pair of people we have here!" The presenter puts a hand on the counter and leans close, waggling his eyebrows. "Can't we get a little kiss for the crowd? Lovebirds like you two surely cannot hold each other back when you're alone, right?"

Gladion's cheeks blister an outrageous color, but not because of the presenter's wrong statement, but because of the request and the low chanter of the crowd asking for the kiss. It's a nightmare scenario, Gladion quickly concludes, where people will end up peer-pressuring him into doing something he doesn't want to.

It's not like the idea of kissing Moon repulses him – which is a matter for a whole other day – but he would never want to do such an intimate thing in public. Not to mention that it'd be their first… kiss, even if it's on the cheek and it's supposed to be a little gesture of affection, and maybe he's overthinking it–

Moon puts a gentle hand on his, where he's reached to grab his own trembling hand. Moon grins brightly. "We're more of a private kinda couple. Besides, he gets kinda clingy after kissing, so maybe not today."

He doesn't like the implications she's posing, but he's grateful for her quick save nonetheless. The presenter is disappointed, and so is the crowd. "What a shame. I suppose some girls are prude like that. Let's hope you get married someday."

Her eyes widen as he leaves to attend another couple. She blinks, processing the passive-aggressive comment with uncanny slowness.

"I want to punch him in the face and poison his food if he gets to taste it."

There is something ridiculously tense and offended in her face that prompts him to smirk, chuckling. "The fact that he called _you_ prude is hilarious."

Moon elbows him on the side.

The other interviews are fairly uninteresting. The Pongii, surprisingly articulate, declare that they are there to prove their prowess and share the ancient recipes from their clan. Clearly, they are much better suitors to win; Moon just wants to have fun and grab a gift for Lillie, which is an admittedly charming thing to pursue, to be honest.

"Very well! Now that we know a little about _most_ of our contestants, we shall proceed to know the theme of our contest!" He picks a small card from the wide table set for the jurors, who are looking onwards with pleasant smiles. The presenter flicks his finger on the card and holds it up for everyone to see.

"This year, the theme will be _Foods and Goods from the Aedus and Karee Empires: Story of the World_!" Both Moon and Gladion's eyes widen. "You will be requested to prepare one main dish and a dessert in the span of half an hour! Our judges and yours truly will taste the dishes and decide which one fares the best. You have thirty minutes starting…"

_Now!_

Moon and Gladion immediately scramble to their fridge to look for food, but they are clueless as to what to cook or to take. Their inexperience has rendered them equal parts uncreative and rather unskilled.

Gladion closes the fridge softly, leaning against it. "Right. Maybe we should think about what we are going to cook before grabbing the ingredients."

Moon puts a hand under her chin. Her boot drums on the floor. _Tap-tap-tap_.

"The Aedus Empire has a knack for rice and spices in general. Hau told me there are a _lot_ of them in the Driftveil Market, so we could _try_ to make those fancy rice dishes. I loosely remember how it is made." _Loosely_ is a frighteningly bad term for her to use. "Are there any pieces of chicken in there?"

Gladion opens the fridge, searches for a little and takes out a wrapped package with the pertinent label. "Bingo."

"Perfect." Moon takes the chicken to the counter. She leans her hip against the hard marble countertop, expression twisted in thought. "If we're gonna make an Aedus-based dish, then we need to turn to the Karee Empire for the dessert." Her eyes widen for a second, and then, she grins. "I have an idea!"

" _Berry buns_!"

Moon is highly taken aback by the statement, not because it was hers, but because it was _his_ , too. Gladion had said the dish name with such enthusiasm and conviction that Moon is left to stare and knit her eyebrows in surprise. "How do you know about that dish? I have never seen it anywhere other than, uh, my hometown."

Well, crap. Gladion had not anticipated that he'd slip up so bad, let alone be it in front of _her_. He had expected for his small side-quest to be discovered by Hau, maybe Ilima. It's not like his quest to discover about the Karee Empire is _illegal_ or in any way _damning_ – other than the fact that he kinda wants to know more about _her_ hometown because it's _hers_ _but that's a topic for another day too_.

He has a very good reason to lie this time, and he pulls the excuse out of his sleeve smoothly.

"I know how to do those– I ate them a little too often when I lived in Ludwig Town," he explains, voice a tidbit hoarse. "The local bakery makes them very often. I didn't know they were originally made in the Karee Empire."

Faba feeding him _too much bread that definitely wasn't good for him_ had finally come in handy after _decades_. That old man had always said that _'if the bread is good, then your diet is good'_. His credentials as a doctor are doubtful, to say the least.

One of her eyebrows rises, skeptical, probably seeing the cracks in his excuse, but she shrugs it off soon enough and decides to grin instead, clapping her hands. "Right! Then, we gotta get cooking! I'll get the rice started, you get your hands on the dough!"

Collaborating with Moon on a task as simple and mundane as this is new. They would usually brawl over the simplest of aspects of daily life, be it how to fold shirts, how to eat toast or how to bake bread; cooperating, though, feels much nicer than whatever thrill their quips would elicit out of him. He finds himself shifting into that 'daily, calm life' attitude all too quickly, asking for certain utensils from her and helping her with the rice measurements when needed.

"This pot is absolutely hideous," she says, pouring a bit of oil into the pot along with some garlic. "It's _green_. It's the most anti-intuitive color for a cooking device."

"Did you add the salt?"

She shakes her head. "Nope. I'll add it to the water. Do you need this spoon?"

Gladion nods. "I will need it when the yeast is done doing its stuff." His eyes shift to the bottle of oil on her side and he pinches the bridge of his nose. "Crap. I forgot to add the oil to the yeast."

Moon exhales a chuckle and hands it to him. "Try to add it now, _darling_. We can't have our children starving because you forgot to feed the yeast."

He's always known they'd work well as a team in battles; he never thought that could be said for their daily life as well, and he finds himself wondering what it would be like to spend more time with her, like _this_. It's oddly peaceful, oddly heart-warming.

He likes to spend time with her in any way, he realizes; it slaps him in the face. Gladion doesn't know what to do with himself after that realization.

Just as he entertains this thought, he sneaks a peek at the crowds. His face, previously bright and focused, slackens. "You're not going to believe who is in the crowd."

"Eh?"

Moon turns to look at the crowd, licking from a spoon to probably test the food. Her eyes widen significantly as she puts her eyes on a group of three people porting Pongii hats and sunglasses, waving at the duo with bright, devil-worthy smiles. The blond-pink dreamboat is sketching something on a notebook.

"I can't believe this," mutters Moon. "They're here to piss us off. They're having the time of their lives."

Gladion can't take his eyes off Ilima. "Is… Is Ilima sketching us?"

"Ilima can do absolutely anything he wants to if it will piss the other end off," Moon states dryly, turning to Gladion. "I'm gonna turn the oven on to preheat. Watch over the rice pot and I'll cut some onions."

Gladion goes and does that. He feels he has little to do considering the yeast is resting and eating from the sugar and water _and oil_ he put in the bowl, and that should take about ten minutes. Moon's rice should be done fast enough, and as far as he knows, she's working on the sauce now. They should have enough time to pull all this off. In his head, presenting a standard, non-winning dish is better than presenting nothing.

He entertains himself with the numbers and the math and the contest's tension because he can feel about a hundred eyes staring at him as he does the simple job of stirring a pot and he _loathes_ the attention. Gladion has never been a fan of attention, something that seems to run on the blood considering Lillie's issues with it as well. His repulsion for the spotlight sometimes keeps him up late at night, more so now than before.

In the future, he might sit atop the food chain, on a throne too big for him. He will be the source of attention for too many people, and that's one of the things that irks him and _scares_ him about the job. He could eventually face his fears and get his shit together, but that's a process too lengthy for him to even begin considering it now.

What sort of Emperor would be scared of crowds? It's ridiculous. He stabs the rice. He's so–

Gentle hands grasp his shoulders from behind. "You're gonna end up making some sort of nasty rice cream if you don't chill, Gladbag." He lets himself be turned around by her. "What's up? You've gotten all tense and weird."

Gladion realizes that her hands are covered by blue mittens, wearing some cuts on the sides that she had maybe prodded with the knife. He sighs. "I… I'm not very fond of all these people."

"Yeah, the presenter is an asshole, but–"

He puts his hand over her mouth, impatient. "I mean the crowd. They _stare_. It's hard to focus with so many people looking at you and probably criticizing absolutely everything we're doing." His hand lingers over Moon's mouth. She's moving her mouth to try and speak, but she's not saying anything. "I don't like being the center of attention."

"If you would be so kind and _fucking_ uncover my mouth, I'd be super grateful." He lowers his hand gently and finds her to be biting back a smile. "Listen, I know this isn't the ideal situation, and trust me that if I had known there'd be so many people I would have told you–"

"I know it's not your fault," he interrupts, sighing. "It's not like I'm anxious or anything, I can deal with it just fine. It's a very silly thing–"

Something rough but also smooth hits his cheeks and squishes them; Moon decidedly slaps her mittens on his face, tiptoeing to stare at him on the face because _of course she sometimes doesn't know what physical boundaries are_.

"Now, if I hear you call your stuff silly I'll grab another oven pan and hit you with it but _harder_ this time. I'm not gonna hold back." Gladion attempts to say something but she squishes harder, eyes narrowing further. "None of the guys watching us know who you are. They might be whispering how good you are at, uh, kneading the dough. Or beating the rice. And if they're criticizing you, you can just go up to them and tell them they don't know shit."

"It's not that easy," Gladion mumbles against her mittens.

"I _know_ but you gotta breeze through this. We have fought in battles with three times this crowd's worth. It's not like you to chicken out like this and I'm not gonna allow it." Moon pats his cheeks, grinning. "So you're gonna take a deep breath, roll your shoulders, and keep cooking. The quicker we'll get this done and the quicker we'll go to the hotel and sleep all this nonsense off. Think about it as being just _you_ and _me_."

She lets go of his face. He does as she asked in the very same order, and her eyes remain on him all the while, nodding approvingly. "You're saying it like you were forced to come here," he comments, trying to distract himself. "Also, we just gave Ilima a lot of content to sketch about."

Moon puts her mitten-ed hands on her hips. "Do you think I care?"

"No, I don't."

"Exactly."

"Oh, lá _lá_!" Arceus on a stick. Just when he thought things were beginning to look up, the presenter twirls into the scene with a grin to boot. "How are our lovely prude lovebirds doing? You have a very nice chopped onion here!"

Moon walks over to him, sporting a dim, satisfied smile. "Thank you! I happen to be very good with the knives, you see!"

The presenter laughs, missing Moon's threat completely. Neither Moon or Gladion understand why he does this, nor why the crowd laughs along with him. "I suppose you are better with the knife than at love, huh? No wonder your man is so flustered about this contest, he must be so ashamed!"

The presenter turns around and waltzes out of the scene. Gladion has to physically restrain Moon from going over to him and punching him dead into the next Realm. "Calm down! He's only saying all these things to get a laugh out of the public."

Moon wiggles out of his hold and she turns to him, frowning. "Did you hear the same thing I did? He's gonna try our food, he's so stupid!" Moon peers at the rice on the pot from over his shoulder. A wicked snicker escapes her. "I saw Tamato berries in a basket. They're super spicy, so–"

"You are _not_ going to burn his tongue. It was not _that_ bad."

Moon rolls her eyes and turns around, chuckling. "I should've come alone."

Gladion gets to work on the buns after this lapse. He has watched the chefs at Ludwig Town do this recipe at least a thousand times; he knows each and every detail that goes into this pastry. He beats one egg in a bowl and plops it in, as well as some butter that Moon has been melting on the stove. After that, he grabs the wooden spoon had offered him earlier and adds three handfuls of flour.

When the mix isn't sticky, he drops it on the flour-covered counter and begins to knead. Curious eyes peek over his shoulder. She's holding a pan. "You got a nice technique. Never expected you to have more sensitivity with a ball of dough than your fair lady in distress."

"You're a far cry from a damsel in distress," he comments, making her hum as she sets the pan under the counter and drags the onion in. The pan must be carrying some heat because it begins to sizzle immediately. "What are you up to, now?"

"Gonna fry the onion a little, and then I'll come by to cut the chicken. The rice is ready, finally." Gladion nods. "By the way, I saw some chocolate in the box by the fridge. Maybe you can sprinkle some in there."

He nods again, and she lets him be. While kneading absent-mindedly, he takes the opportunity to take a look at his closest competition, that being the Pongii and their frantic scrambling around the kitchen. Gladion looks for any trace of panic in their eyes that might make his hopes rise, but they are as loud as they are successful. There is a small scent of spices and butter that is making his stomach growl.

As he soon discovers, though, it doesn't come from their pan, but Moon's. She's coming over whilst twirling her knife in her hands, resembling her habits when it comes to her daggers. She grabs the chicken and begins to cut it with frightening ease, whistling as she does so. "How are our enemies doing?"

"Calling enemies might be a stretch, but they seem to be doing fine," he comments. His words are prodded by Moon's meticulous cuts and slicing. Gladion glances down at his dough and finds it to be fully done. "Hand me that towel. And fetch me some milk."

"Where's your education, Gladbag?" Moon nearly _purrs_ , smirking as she walks away to the fridge. "You weren't like this when we met, _darling_. You gotta say please even if I'm your girlfriend."

Gladion sighs. "Just for today."

Moon nods, bending over to grab the desired items. "Just today."

She throws the towel in his direction and puts the milk right by him, dancing away with her pieces of chicken and throwing them into the pan. The smell it releases serenades Gladion into the false, overzealous hopes that they might win; just as he's about to cheer, he realizes that they only have fifteen minutes left and that he has to let the dough rise.

He drops the dough on the oven tray and with a brush he finds lying around – it might not be meant to be used on food, but he's seen bakers use it and he doesn't care anymore – he dabs some milk on the surface.

Wait, he has to put the chocolate and the orange and all his beautiful flavors in. Fuck. Gladion hurriedly throws the blanket away and begins to divide the dough into separate buns. "Moon, I need your help."

She's by his side in an instant. "What's up, Gladbag?"

"Grab the chocolate and cut it for me. If you find anything else worth mentioning, I'd love to hear your ideas."

Moon flashes him a thumbs-up and rummages through the box while the chicken simmers in the background. It's nice, he thinks, having her follow his instructions for once. He's tempted to tease her about her mellow behavior, but Gladion isn't interested in riling her up or destroying this delicate peace, so he kneads the dough thoroughly.

She comes back with her arms full of things: she has chocolate, too many bottles of Tamato berry extract – she places this right in front of him – and there are caramels, some white things that he doesn't quite know, and also a few gummies. She only hands him the chocolate and Tamato extract, as well as two oranges that he asks for. "What are you gonna do with these?"

"I'll put the chocolate in the bun and some orange zest on top. I thought I could add sugar too for a little crunch, but that might be aiming too high."

His precise wording triggers her instantly; she grins wide, pleased. "In this house we aim as high as possible, even if the arrow strikes us through our skull." What a brazenly transparent thing for her to say. "I'll bring you some sugar. Give me one second."

Moon takes a bit more than one second; she stops to check on the chicken and pours _something on the pan that smells delicious_ , as well as give everything a little stir. He hears the fire under her pan die down a little, and whatever she's cooking begins to bubble up and release _Arceus-like spicy goodness_ as Hau has many times called the smell of curry.

When she's back, she gives him the sugar and puts the chocolate on a new cutting board. She's oddly meticulous about cutting food on different boards when she never bothered to give the same treatment to human people. "The curry rice is almost done. It tastes good."

He regards her shortly, just a quick look to see how she's doing and finds an interesting detail worthy of his attention: she has a spot of orange-colored cream on her cheek, close to the corner of her mouth. It pulls him in like the color of red or like a good book, and his fingers itch and tremble as he realizes that he needs to get that thing off her cheek very, _very_ badly.

Almost _tenderly_ , Gladion wipes the splash of cream off her cheek with his thumb very, very slowly, taking in the way her eyes widen and her cheeks redden. " _Wh–What_."

So it's physical contact which makes her jump. It makes sense, in a way, because her touch makes him have that same reaction of mixed confusion and embarrassment. At least she isn't running away like the day before, and she doesn't look nearly as constipated as he does when she puts her hands on him. The skin under his finger has heated up considerably, and dare he say she looks _adorably_ troubled.

Curious, he licks the spot of cream off his thumb and clicks his tongue. "Nice. I was afraid you would poison his food."

"I– I swear to Arceus," she mutters, head turned conveniently as she chops the chocolate at a much more frantic speed. "You get so touchy when you wanna and it pisses me off so– _ow_!"

Great. Gladion's unintentional touchiness has garnered Moon a cut on her finger, but at least she hasn't chopped the whole thing off. It would be very ironic considering the many occasions where she's threatened her friends with doing so. "Really? I just _brush_ your face and you get flustered?"

"That's _not_ the issue here!" Moon hisses, bringing her index to her lips and licking the wounded patch of skin. Gladion swallows. "Damn it. Whatever. We gotta keep going or we're gonna run out of time and I _refuse_ to let that asshole win over me."

They stumble through the remaining process with unprecedented, accidental grace. Moon manages to get the rice and curry sauce in a big deep plate and she seasons it accordingly. She's wrapped her index finger with a patch of her shirt that she's trimmed off, and he makes a mental note to help her out with that when they're out of the contest.

Gladion stuffs the buns with chocolate and a little bit of that zest and adds a sprinkle of cinnamon just because he can, regardless of whether it will taste good or bad. He seals the deal with a brush of milk and some sugar to make the surface just better, in general.

When the presenter announces that there are only two minutes left, Gladion takes the steaming buns out of the oven while Moon places the still steaming curry rice on the countertop, hands covered with her fateful mittens. "Those smell good," she says appreciatively. "When we go back to Zeffarei, you should bake them. I might even be your bodyguard if you behave nice enough."

Looking to annoy her, he pinches her nose without realizing his fingers are hot from holding the tray, and she squeals. As he starts considering he offer – simply because it'd be nice of him to make her happy with this little detail – the presenter hears this and laughs out loud. Again, a very weird thing to do.

"My, my! The lovebirds are getting touchy, finally!" He twirls again, wagging his eyebrows as he faces them with a sultry, slap-worthy smirk. "Maybe you should go ahead and give her a little kiss as an apology, my dear friend! She might not have the initiative, but you sure look like a brave man, right?"

Gladion snarls. He slips into the boyfriend role alarmingly quick. "As she stated earlier, we are a very private couple. We aren't here to entertain neither you or the crowd."

Moon hushes his name chidingly, slapping his shoulder. The crowd is audibly disappointed again. The presenter frowns and clicks his tongue. "I suppose cowards and prudes do flock together."

 _That_ is Gladion's first and last straw. He can withstand many things: being called an edgelord, being called bitter, being called a prude or being called stubborn; being called a coward, though, hits directly on his ego, and Moon picks up on this, arching an eyebrow.

He simply places a hand on her shoulder. "If you want to go ahead and add spice to the buns, I won't stop you."

Moon inhales an excited puff of air, rubbing her hands with sparkly eyes. She might be a below-decent cook, but she's a better troublemaker. "We need to burn that guy's tongue for the greater good of humankind. I called it, I'm glad you've finally seen the light."

She gingerly opens the bottle of Tamato berry extract and pokes a hole into the previously delicious bun. "It's rare for you to lose track of your ambitions so quickly. What happened to winning the contest?" he asks, in no way stopping her deeds.

"Sometimes, we gotta sacrifice our ambitions to enjoy the little pleasures of life, Gladbag." Moon points her knife to the presenter, who is ambling around to check on the contestants for the last final touches of the contest. "That guy's pain is one of those pleasures."

Watching her work and add an _insane_ amount of Tamato berry extract into the bun, he smirks and crosses his arms. "No longer aiming for the highest apple in the tree, are we?"

Moon swiftly turns, knife in her hand. Gladion becomes aware of Wicke's prohibition on her holding weapons, but he guesses it should be fine this time only. "No longer gonna hold me down?"

They stare at each other fervently, smirks prying defiance, passion and a _little bit of something_ that goes down his spine in a non-unpleasant shudder.

The bell chimes and their stare-down is interrupted. Their time to cook has run out, and the judges are ready to taste the final products.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the contest is over!" The presenter turns to the judges, offering them a grand smile. "We shall now offer you our first batch of dishes, prepared with lots of love and dedication by these two girls over here! Please, everyone, offer them a round of applause!"

Hapu and Dawn's dish turns out to be alright. They have baked a cake and they cooked pasta with a pretty neat white sauce over it, which Moon guesses to be some sort of cheese-based sauce. The judges are pleased for the most part, but they offer no more input other than saying 'good' or 'bad'.

Gladion had forgotten how elitist yet verbally disabled everyone is in the gastronomic industry. Oh, well; they will love what's coming their way, then.

After Moon and Gladion are presented to the public, they bring the plates to the wide table, cackling all the while. Gladion tries to keep his expression steady as he explains what their dish consists of. "This is rice with curry, a typical dish in the capital of the Aedus Empire. These buns were also a very common _delicatessen_ in the Karee Empire."

"Yep!" Moon holds her hands up, grinning. Like the little devil she is, Moon slides the tray close to the presenter, who arches an eyebrow in askance. "I would love for you to taste this dish, sir. I have made it with all the love I can't give to my edgy boyfriend."

The presenter reluctantly accepts her offer at first, but then he swiftly grabs a bun. "Of course! I will serve as the best judge for your dish!" Moon blinks innocently, sadistically watching him bite into the bun, which immediately begins to bleed bright orange. "This tastes delightful! Probably one of the best– _ugh_!"

The presenter begins to flail as the spice invades his throat, cheeks blistering and eyes beginning to tear up as Moon leans back in stupefaction, taking careful steps back to Gladion as the man asks for water, asks for anything that will quench the burning hellfire at the bottom of his throat, _anything_. The crowd laughs along to his antics, to his tears of pain, and Moon's shoulders shake as she leans close to Gladion, whose cheeks are full in a pre-laughing expression.

"Look at him," Moon says sincerely. "Told you it was gonna be worth it. He looks like a sunburnt shrimp. _Arceus_."

That's what undoes him; Gladion bursts out laughing along with Moon, supporting himself on her shoulder as both laugh hysterically. His laughs come in bubbles and choked chuckles, gasping for air as the spectacle grows more and more ridiculous the more the man stands without drinking water. Gladion swears he can't breathe, Moon is crying and holding her stomach with her hands.

He feels extremely rejuvenated by this experience alone, simply laughing his ass off to some stranger getting his whole being cleansed and _burnt_ by the sour taste of revenge. Not to mention that Moon's laughter adds a little to the mix, loud and obnoxious but Arceus, it's so nice to simply have fun for once.

Needless to say, they did not win the contest.

They also got kicked out of the contest for life, but that's fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CHAOTIC OTP COOKING: THE RETURN OF HORROR
> 
> This chapter was so, so much fun to write but a nightmare to beta tbh. I'm very, very happy that I just sat down and said 'I need to write the OTP cooking, having fun and being domestic or else my heart will burst'
> 
> so I did
> 
> and oh boy
> 
> do I have much to say???? no because this chapter speaks on its own and THE ONLY THING I'M GONNA BE SCREAMY ABOUT (trying to keep my notes short) is that FUCKING GLADION PROVOKING MOON LIKE THAT IS MY JAM AND REMEMBER: MOON HAS JUST ADMITTED SHE HAS FEELINGS FOR GLADIBOY SO *IMAGINE* THE EMOTIONAL SHENANIGANS THIS DUMBASS IS PUTTING HER THROUGH
> 
> I mean it won't take him very long for things to change
> 
> there's a very, very big lonashipping chapter coming. it's gonna take a pair of chapters to get there but we're getting to the BIG, BIG LONA CHAPTER. YOU KNOW. A VERY BIG BOY. I'M NOT EXAGGERATING IT'S ALL FLUFF AND TENDER STUFF AND-- 
> 
> I'll shut up for now and go lie down and cry about it


	11. Waterfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Moon and Hau talk about love and Moon makes a shocking discovery: Lillie and her letters. Specifically, the sender of them.

"... And that's basically how Gladbag and I got expelled from that palace and how we got here, I guess," Moon explains, resuming her stirring motions on the cream. "Not gonna lie, we had it coming. The presenter was _so_ angry."

"I still can't believe you got legit _kicked_ out and nobody ever found out you're a wanted criminal," sighs Hau, pouring a torrent of cheese on the pot, "and that you got taken out of there by these Pongii dudes."

After the contest had been done – or, more specifically, Gladion and Moon had been kicked out of the palace for 'public disruption', the Pongii clan had come out to talk to Moon and Gladion, and then proceeded to pick them up and rush to the Pongii Waterfalls under the very perplexed watch of Lillie, Hau, and Ilima, who followed them to their residence.

And the Pongii had proceeded to laureate them for their great job regarding the Blackring, to cheer for them and to applaud their bravery. They had enthusiastically asked Moon – because she's the most talkative and exciting when it comes to story-telling – to tell them about their adventures, but all she had done is kneel and tell them the following:

"Kicked some ass and put some old cranky dude to rest. All thanks to my friends. They're the coolest." She had smiled, then. "Let's say we got one boulder off our shoulders, finally."

The Pongii Waterfalls are an abyss within a cliff. They are hidden within the mountains, with the only entrance to their homeland being a wide cave-like passage full of trees, butterflies, and the splitting sunlight coming from the sky and into the abyss. Calling it an abyss is a concept too dark for a place as dreamy as this, in Moon's opinion, but the Pongii don't seem to have any problem with that denomination.

Their houses are scattered on the walls of the cliff, along with flowers of all colors, bushes, and trees that seem to sprout out of nowhere. The small backwater has a great waterfall coming from the gap to the sky that deluges the entirety of the Pongii's base, so the ground is all flora and bridges with flowers and vines. The only noise that civilization shall hear is the constant falling of the water, as well as birds and the rustling of leaves.

Hau hums happily, watching her stir the mixture. The Pongii had been very adamant about having Moon over as a 'thank you' gift for helping them out months ago. She had been in such a rush to get back to Gladion that day that she didn't stay for long enough; Moon has made him swear he will _never_ tell Gladion about it.

"You two had lots of fun, didn't ya?" asks Hau, hopping on the countertop of the kitchen. "I could sense those good ol' sparks from the crowd."

"Again, I can't believe you guys followed us to the contest." Moon dips a finger into the mix and tastes it. She nods to herself in approval.

"Dude, you and Gladbag were all secretive and you snuck out on us. We thought you were going on a date!"

Moon raises an eyebrow in her usual skepticism. "Us? On a date? Are you high?"

"I don't peg any of you two for the romantic date kinda people, but Ilima also said maybe you wanted to brawl and hey, we got our rights to be worried." Moon decides to stay silent about that, not knowing how to respond. "And it wouldn't be that weird if you two went on a date, right?"

She rolls her eyes and takes the batter away from the countertop, proceeding to dump it on a baking tray. "I'm not gonna comment on that. You know my answer already." Which she hopes Hau knows is a _no_ , but not even her herself knows anything at this point. She just wants to go to bed and let this day be over. "Where did that Pongii guy go?"

"No idea." Hau jumps off the counter and walks to her. He makes sure to catch her gaze, leaning forward so he can take a look at her face. Sunlight streams into the waterfalls and against her pale visage, contorted in lingering confusion. "So no dates?"

"Absolutely not."

"But you did cook together. That was kinda cute, y'know." Moon murmurs something akin to ' _Arceus give me patience_ ' that Hau blissfully ignores. "Lillie legit _swooned_ when you did the pat-pat thing with your mittens. I think Ilima drew a picture."

"I always forget he's got an artistic stroke in him. I detest him." Moon growls to herself as she kneads the dough to the sides of the tray. She extends her palm. "Give me the cheese. And the tomato. And all the other stuff that guy mentioned earlier."

The _stuff_ corresponds to a series of herbs and condiments that the Pongii chef had prepared to add to this galette. Hau hands the jar to her. "It was still awesome. You guys killed the contest, y'know."

"And we nearly killed that asshole. That was nice."

"And getting all touchy-touchy with Gladbag wasn't nice?"

" _Okay_." Moon sighs, turning to Hau. He's wiggling his eyebrows and grinning like he's got marshmallow for teeth, and his arms are bent like when he's laid-back, relaxed, and all sorts of good yet now _bad_ things. "What's gotten into you suggesting me and Gladbag are a thing?"

"C'mon, you and Gladbag were _constantly_ teasing me about Lillie, it's only fair I get to do the same when you two are so touchy-touchy." Moon is too tired to give him a witty retort. "You two are super cute."

Moon smiles. She can't quite muster a grin. "Of course, we're very cute people. I once told him to his face that he's cute and he got angry about it." She snickers. "Imagine Gladion with Lillie's personality. Imagine how good the world would be without his constant complaining."

"And the dream of what he might look like when he smiles like, for real?"

"I guess that too," Moon replies without thinking, only to be caught in the act by a laughing Hau. She turns to him, spoon in hand. "Oh, you're taking advantage of me now! That's _so_ unfair!"

He puts a hand on her shoulder, attempting to clear the air. "You know I ain't serious, but you got a thing for him, don't you? I'm genuinely asking like the best pal I am."

Moon wants to answer his question, really, but she can't quite do that. She's never really been able to be emotionally open unless the situation demanded that from her; Hau, though, is _not_ a situation, but a nosy guy that she adores yet can't quite stand right now. And it's not like he's asking anything simple. He's asking if she has feelings for that _bitter edgelord with no sense of fashion or respect but–_

Moon grimaces, bringing a hand to her stomach, and then to her neck, rubbing the back of it. "I'm not gonna comment on any of this. Again, it should be obvious, Captain Crush."

"D'aw, you just wanna turn the tables on me!"

She pats the dough several times – maybe a bit too hard – and covers it with a cloth. Moon uses the spoon to boop him on the nose, smirking. "What are _you_ gonna do about your itty bitty crush on Lils, though? You gotta tell her. You can't just act all cute and enamored to then _not_ act on it, buddy."

"And to think Gladion told you about that," he sighs, but doesn't look forlorn in the slightest. "I wanted to tell ya' personally and, you know, have one of those bonding moments and have tea. He robbed me of that."

"We can have that now if you wanna– at least until the chef comes back and beats my ass to the Dark Realm for not seasoning the dough." Hau chuckles at her comment. Moon grabs one stool from the wooden aisle and drags it to sit right in front of Hau, her front pressed to the back of the chair. "Now you tell me, mister; what are you gonna do about Lillie?"

"Am I supposed to know?" Hau leans against the counter, relaxed. "We're fine like we are now. I don't even know if she wants a relationship– and I ain't that concerned about it either. We're just having fun."

Suddenly, Moon feels a little awkward about the subject. Sure, she has projected her ambitions on Hau and Lillie as her little 'experiment'– not in a superficially bad way, but she's always wanted them to be happy. The books and the novels always said that the prince and the princess would fall in love, share a kiss, and be together forever. Hau and Lillie already have held hands. They must be at least halfway there, right?

Moon tilts her head. She had never expected Hau to be this laid-back about this issue. "You don't wanna go out with her?"

"I mean, yeah? I don't even know how good that'd be, though." Probably seeing she's comfy this way, he drags a stool and sits the same way as her, directly in front of her. "Of course I wanna date her, who am I kidding? She's the best girl around, man."

"I'll pretend that didn't wound my poor little heart," Moon dramatically clutches her heart, "but go on."

Hau laughs heartily. The sound fills the small space and bounces on the kitchen utensils hanging from the low ceiling. "I just imagine like, cuddling with her and hugging her and doing all those sorts of stuff I can't do as friends and… man, my heart squeezes real bad. It's super weird." Hau grabs his shirt for emphasis. "It's like having my guts punched and my stomach tickled. It's the weirdest stuff ever."

Moon puts her elbows on the back of the chair, relaxing to listen to him. "Haven't you ever been in love before?"

"I haven't seen that many people around before I met ya' two. Maybe fleeting attractions, but not much more than that. But with Lillie it's… so different, man– _she's_ so different." One of those cute, goofy smiles stretches his lips and fills his cheeks. "I just wanna pull her in and hug her and tell her everything's gonna be alright. I love you and Gladbag to bits but… she's another case entirely."

"You can still hug and cuddle your friends, though," She's hugged Gladion. She's sure that she has never cuddled him but she's aware that they have had… _intimate_ contact, but no cuddling. "I wouldn't get mad over you cuddling me."

"I wouldn't mind it either, but it's not like I go around _wanting_ to hug and cuddle people all the time, dude. I don't think many people have that impulse unless it just _happens_. But I wanna be with her all the time and give her hugs and… _kisses_ , too." Moon's eyes widen, but no murderous intent appears in her eyes despite his declarations; everyone knows how protective she is of Lillie. "I wanna be with her. Like, just _be_ with her. Do you know when you're craving for food? It's the same."

She's not sure if the analogy is correct, but she guesses it makes sense. "You and Lillie sure got your shit together," Moon grumbles.

"What?"

" _Nothing_ ," she coughs. "I'm not used to seeing people get all feelsy and cheesy about someone else. I'm happy to see you're happy after all that's happened, though. Lillie deserves someone like you in her life, even if it gives me diabetes."

"It ain't like she hasn't got me already. We're gonna be friends forever no matter what happens." Hau purses his lips. "I just don't know what to do with myself when I'm around her. I get all jittery and nervous. I wanna jump through the roof but also hold her hand. I think I blush a lot too. I'm just a damn mess."

Why does that case sound… familiar? Moon chuckles, albeit a tad nervous. Barely noticeable. She hopes. "Whenever she laughs you look _super_ troubled. It's cute."

Rubbing his neck, he shares a nervous laugh. "I hope she hasn't realized I'm such a sucker for her. It'd make things awkward."

"Why?"

"We're fine as friends and it's not the time to be thinking about all this stuff either– she's got enough on her plate being the Empress and being, like, royalty. She's a busy girl." A sigh escapes him. He rubs his scalp a bit more erratically. "If Gladbag doesn't accept the crown, then it's gonna be bad. And she's gonna be forever busy when we get back to Zeffarei, so it's not like we're gonna have time to be together, anyway."

Moon smirks. "It's not like you're not gonna be a free man yourself. You've been training to get into the army again, haven't you?"

"I _have_ , but it's nowhere near possible when you're a sorcerer and the military is looking for swordsmen. It's like Gladbag and I switched places– it sucks." He pouts just a little. "Maybe I could ask him."

Moon takes his silence as a moment to reflect on his words. Normally she would resort to making a quip or a joke to get out of this serious conversation, but considering she's been pushing far and loud to get them together, it's only logical she gives it some thought. She's unsure as to what to say because she's nowhere as experienced as literally _anyone_ in the group. Gladion might be close to her level in terms of stunted emotions, but even he gets around better than she does.

Moon simply doesn't understand emotions, and when she does, she gets so flustered about it and so confused it's impossible to know what she's feeling. It's easy to get overwhelmed when you have spent most of your life on your own.

When she sits down with her friends, though, there is a small lining of emotion, affection, sensation. When they laugh together, there is a swell of her heart. When Gladion puts his pretentious ugly cape over her and sometimes _smiles_ when she thinks she can't see him, there's something _else_ , too.

But that's meaningless and she's _not_ going to think about it today.

"You know," Moon concludes, swinging her head from side to side slightly, "you and Lillie are gonna be busy all the time, at least until things calm down _for real_ in Zeffarei. Wicke calls now _calm_ but that's bullshit. We still got a long while before we sorta come to terms with all that's happened."

"What's your point, though?" asks Hau, arching an eyebrow.

"That you can't pretend you can wait forever until you get a gap to wiggle in a relationship. This stuff takes time and patience and probably _lots_ of spending time together, and that's something you're just not gonna have exclusive time for." His eyes widen in surprise. "I haven't gotten to dig up a treasure in _ages_ because I've been all over the place since I came back from Bakiria, but I sometimes sneak out to explore. I gotta juggle all of it along with my duties as the great headmistress I am and Lillie's bodyguard."

"Ah, Gladbag saw you sneaking out one day."

Moon sighs. "And he nearly dragged me back to the palace because ' _Moon you can't go explore at three in the morning that's illegal._ '" Her mimicking makes Hau laugh. "He's one hell of a hypocrite when he spent so much time studying. Ridiculous edgelord."

Hau's laughter dissolves into a troubled sigh. "Still… so you think I can't go out with her?"

" _What_? That's not it." Moon smirks at him, knowingly peering into his eyes like a viper. "But even if I did, you'd still wanna try things out with her, wouldn't you?"

He seems troubled. "I mean–"

" _Exactly_." She smirks, pleased with his flustered expression. "You've grown much braver than I ever expected you to, but you can't stand back on this one. If anything, this is the best time for you to man up and tell her how you feel before we're back to Zeffarei."

Hau appears to be fine with this – dare she say he looks _relieved_ that his beliefs, shaky at best, have been debunked – but his visage still presents problems on top of more problems. "I got no idea how to confess, though. I've never done this stuff. She's gonna laugh at me so hard…"

Moon pats his head. "She _won't_. Lillie would never laugh at you, don't be ridiculous." Moon remains silent for a second and then grins. "I could help you out, y'know– maybe set up some dinner, some candles, and play the violin for you two."

"Do ya' even know how to play the violin?"

"No, but I would learn for you two. That's the power of friendship."

They laugh at their own jokes like everything is fine and good– though it actually is. Everything is going great thus far, some separate incidents aside that Moon will never forget about. In this little space of sunlight, shadows, and the smell of dough and cheese, Moon feels protected and sheltered, with Hau by her side talking about deep topics that she would have never even thought about before meeting her now irreplaceable friends.

Arceus, she's grown into a softie.

"Actually… I had an idea or two. I could give those some thought on our way to Ludwig Town."

Moon blinks out of her daze. "Wait, so Gladbag wants to go in the end? Really?"

"Lillie insisted that she wants to visit his hometown and Gladbag kinda lost it when she pulled the puppy eyes." Moon chuckles at this and presses her cheek on her hand, sighing as Hau stands up. "I'm gonna check on the dough. Somebody's not doing her job."

Moon sticks out her tongue, and he laughs.

Before the contest, when Gladion had mentioned that Gemstone Village is pretty close to Ludwig Town, Lillie had begun firing questions and requests to go. Normally, Gladion would give her a clean, yet polite rejection; but last time had been different. He had probably been just as tired as Moon after that exhausting but great cooking contest, but he hadn't rejected Lillie's petition right away this time.

Moon knows that his godfather lives there, and she had never gotten to give him a proper face to match the 'not toxic but yes really' experience Gladion had been hinting at. Whatever he looks like, Moon hopes it's a punchable face, and that Gladion is ready to come back to his hometown that had once jailed him like a small, fluffy bird. Many questions assault her: will he have forgiven him? Will they have a heart to heart? Will he want to stay in his hometown, maybe? Moon finds herself not liking that idea much.

Is he truly ready to forgive his godfather for all he's done to him? He has become very mature over the passing of months, so who knows what he will do now. She finds herself smiling at the thought; Gladion has pushed himself into the unknown and _Arceus_ , it would be great to watch his godfather shrink and watch how his protegeé had become bigger than him thanks to his growth as a person, his bravery, his kindness, his… everything, or at least most of it.

She's proud of him. He's come so far.

"Y'know, you ain't half bad about the emotion stuff," chirps Hau in, suddenly. "Gladbag totally changed your game, didn't he?"

Moon puffs her cheeks. "Now, what is _that_ supposed to mean?"

"What has happened to my precious dough?"

The chef has finally come back – it had been picking up mushrooms, she remembers, looking at its mushroom-shaped hat. Hau tugs at the collar of his neck as the Pongii walks into the room, swinging left-right-left-right with its little legs. "It's chilling there to raise. You told us to do that, didn't ya?"

The Pongii takes a peek at the dough, humming all the while. "I suppose it is alright– but you haven't begun working on the sauce! Look at all my ingredients, lonely and un-sauced!"

Moon hurries to stand up from her stool. This creature is small but it can make her stiffen like a rod. "We were about to–"

"Then get to work! No more yipping in this professional kitchen, you hear me?" The Pongii points at them, frowning. "You might be heroes but in my house, you're gonna be accepting my lessons and my lessons only!"

Moon and Hau salute in compliance, sighing with lazy smiles. "Aye, aye, sir."

* * *

Moon and Hau come out of the chef's home late in the afternoon, before sunset. They tread down wooden paths that go from house to house, with Hau looking down and walking closer by Moon while she simply enjoys the sights around her. She stretches her arms and groans, letting all the soreness of today break loose.

"Arceus, I can't wait to take a bath later." She brings a hand to her neck and presses on the sore spot, letting out a groan. "I'm sore all over."

"Dude, it's _cold_ outside!" Hau rubs his own arms up and down as he looks around. The mighty altitude they are walking over might be adding to his general nervousness. Moon nonchalantly holds a hand up to the side, trying to catch some spraying water from the waterfall they are walking by. "How can you be thinking of a bath now?"

"Have you seen all the water we have around us? How can you _not_ be thinking of a bath now?" Moon shakes her head and leaps forward, gasping as she glides in the air for a few seconds, descending the wooden bridge quickly. She lands gracefully, grinning. "Besides, cold baths are super good for your body. You should join me! You could use some moisture on those dry cheeks of yours."

Moon turns around like a gazelle and touches his face curiously, no evil or soft intent hidden. Hau nervously laughs at both her proximity and touch but says nothing against it. "I ain't against getting some moisture back on my skin, but is it that noticeable?"

"Just a little." She gives him a dry, sarcastic smirk. "Maybe Lils has noticed, though." A wink. "You could go to one of those fancy salons in Gemstone Village and get dolled up together!"

Hau tries to hit Moon on the shoulder but, as cat-agile as she is, she dodges the hit and continues springing down the bridges with silly joy, a far shot ahead of Hau while he descends slowly, trying to not fall off the creaking bridges.

Moon finds the rest of her friends tucked in a corner of the basin, close to one of the mighty waterfalls. It's uncanny for Gladion to sit in the compromised place that is right under a boulder supporting a whole house; she doesn't hesitate to comment on it. Even when she clears her throat and puts her hands on her knees, looming over him, he doesn't peel his eyes from the book.

Her lips curl into a pout. "That house is gonna fall on you and you're still gonna be reading that book." Upon hearing her voice, he instantly shuts the book close, gritting his teeth. Her lips curl at the corners. "Much better. Is it that same untitled book?"

" _Yes_ ," he says curtly. "And I was doing fine until you had to nearly give me a heart attack."

Their eyes meet, green meeting everlasting charcoal. There is a very off glint in his eyes that she can't quite read; it might be that he's irritated because she's interrupted him, but she's never cared about that and she knows he doesn't either. There's something else in his eyes calling her attention.

Moon squats to be at his level. "I wanna know what your book is about, though. You always get extra prissy whenever I ask."

His nose wrinkles. "It's just a book."

An arched eyebrow. "Oh?"

Like a panther, Moon puts her hands on the grass and moves forward, crawling over him with twinkling narrowed eyes. Gladion feels his eyes widening and his hands scrambling to grab his bag _and_ book before it's too late. She hovers over his legs, then her hands press right where his hips lie, and then her face is raising to meet his shaky gaze, unable to hold her stare. Gladion has always prided himself in being able to fend off any tiger with his cold glares, but when it comes to Moon, he's unable to do much.

Not when she's gazing at him with an intent that could cut steel, polish diamonds, and set his heart into a race.

Her eyebrows are knit in focus, staring at him in a distance that either she doesn't notice is _alarmingly_ scant or she's simply messing with him, as usual. A swish of mint, lemon, and water sticks to her like spring, when in reality it's winter and he can see the little goosebumps on her arms. He wonders if it's because they are close, or maybe because she's _thrilled_ at the prospect of pissing him off.

A beat of silence passes, then two. He gulps, and he's sure she's following the swallow with her eyes for a split second. Her gaze makes him… nervous, but in a good yet _terrible_ way. He doesn't understand how she can conjure his stomach to curl like _this_ when she's close. It's unexplainable and the more she looks at him, the more he wants to forget about it.

It's all too complicated. His throat tightens up as she leans half an inch closer. Something twitches within him, a little bit of bubbling and a little bit of tickling within him that makes him stiffen. She's kind, she's insufferable, she's sadistic–

The latter comes true in a tragic manner, and she hits his nose with her index, grinning devilishly. "Your cheeks are red. You should grab a scarf, Gladion."

And she's off like that, laughing merrily to herself as she succeeds in fucking him up like it's clockwork and like this means absolutely nothing. Maybe it doesn't, maybe he's just not used to physical contact. Yes. That's a very good explanation. It makes sense.

"I will _fucking kill you_ one of these days," he grumbles, rubbing his face to stave off the faint red in his cheeks. "No wonder people think we're dating. You will give me a heart attack at this rate."

"You have a very funny face when people get a little close," she grins, not realizing the devastating truth that is that only _her_ proximity gets him like this– _what the fuck_. "It's good to see you like that. As your rival, it's my duty to get you riled up like this. It's in my contract. I take contracts very seriously."

"Your only duty as my rival is to make my life miserable and you're succeeding with flying colors," he deadpans, reaching into his bag to take his book out again.

Before he can add anything else, she flashes him two thumbs-up and stalks off, looking for Lillie. Ilima is nowhere to be found, but she guesses he must be somewhere either making contacts with the Pongii – that man loves taking advantage of situations like these for political benefits – or hunting, which is unlikely; he's never been fond of 'acts as rebellious and barbaric as going hunting'.

Moon finds her reading peacefully by the waterfall. She's got this giddy smile on her face, as well as a little tilt to her head that gives away she's just as engrossed in her reading as Gladion had been. Moon smiles to herself, treading close.

She finds that Lillie isn't reading a book, but rather a paper that had been folded at least a thousand times. "You're gonna get wet and soggy if you sit this close to the waterfall."

Unlike Gladion's outburst of faux anger, Lillie merely addresses her with warm, calm, and kind eyes. She waves at her, hiding her mouth with the upper part of the letter. "You two took a long time to come out of there. Was the chef too demanding?"

Moon ducks her legs under her, cross-legged before Lillie. She gives him one of her chaotic, brave smiles. "He said our bread was fine, so I guess that's good. I'm officially allergic to pretentious chefs from today on."

She giggles. "Does my brother count, then?"

"Is he a chef?"

"By no means, but he cooks."

"Hm." Moon rubs her chin, eyes nowhere in particular. "I guess I'm allergic to Gladbag now. And because I love beating my enemies to a pulp, I'm gonna have to battle him as soon as we got an opportunity. Maybe I could ask his godfather when we get to Ludwig Town."

Well, that's a terrible idea and she's obviously joking. The only bad germ to be aware of in that town will for sure be his actual godfather. The possibility of meeting him has Moon on edge, somehow, so she can only wonder how Gladion is feeling now. At least he's taking it in his deliberate edgy ways. She wouldn't have it any other way.

Moon realizes a few seconds later that Lillie, nose deep into those letters, isn't paying attention. "What are you reading? You got a bit of a mess around you, ma'am."

Lillie perks up at this call for attention, stilling her reading. Her cheeks have become flush-bitten, so much so Moon wonders _why_ exactly these two siblings blush so randomly. The paper rustles as it tightens in her grasp, and the few letters scattered around her so haphazardly shift with the breeze. Some of them are stained yellow-ish around the corners, and there are lines scribbled on them.

"Uh… it's complicated." Moon has never seen Lillie act so shyly. Not without Hau around, at least. "It's very… sappy business. You would never be interested in–"

"Are _kidding_ me?" Moon scrambles to her knees, hovering over Lillie with a grin. The latter's eyes go round in impression. "I'm _always_ down for that! I'm your bodyguard both physically and love-wise."

Lillie giggles, slowly recovering from her surprise. Fully trusting as she is, she flips the letter for her to see, playing with the ribbons around her blouse. "Uh… I was reading some letters that this past penpal of me used to send. I was feeling a little nostalgic so I took them out." Moon's brows disappear under her side-swept fringe. "I don't need to read them anymore but… I did so on a whim."

Moon, despite Lillie's obvious softness over this issue, grins. "So these are the famous love letters from your childhood crush!" She kicks her feet, biting her lip. "I've always wanted to read these _so_ bad!"

The assassin reads them straight away. A few lines into the letter, Moon's blood freezes and she stops breathing altogether.

"I… I didn't want to give this issue more importance than necessary, especially when I'm… working things out with Hau– but we don't need to talk about that at all, either." Lillie bites her teeth and fails to realize that Moon isn't listening. "It's a very childish story and when I told you about it you laughed! I know you didn't do it on purpose and that you said it was cute but I'm… still reluctant about telling people about this. Mother never approved of me getting crushes, so…"

Moon slowly holds a hand up, signaling Lillie to wait for a second. Her eyes remain glued to the letter, making Lillie swallow her words with a meek sigh. "Did I say too much? I didn't mean to overwhelm you or anything."

Moon stares at the letter.

She stares on and on like the whole world is open in those few lines scribbled with that familiar calligraphy.

Hau's calligraphy.

It's _Hau's calligraphy_. Holy fucking _shit_.

Moon, as a traveler, has never believed the saying of 'the world being small', because the world is pretty freaking big. If anything, it's the people who are small– but this occurrence, this small detail that had never crossed her mind, makes the world look about a pea's size.

Not only does Lillie love Hau now (very likely), but she loves both his present self and his past self that he no longer remembers about. _This_ is the sort of stuff in those love novels that Moon always knew to be fake, to be pretentious, to be simply surreal.

Moon slowly turns to Lillie, very silent and still. Her eyes are owl-wide, gaping to find words to say. "I– are these the actual letters? For real?"

And sweet, naïve Lillie doesn't suspect a thing. "They are! He was the sweetest thing ever– well, I suppose Hau is close to him in that regard." She giggles, obviously missing the very evident irony here. "They always brighten up my day. I could even recite most of the lines by heart, but they always make my heart flutter. I can almost picture him smiling, even if I don't know what he truly looks like."

Moon's eyes are nearly boggling out of their sockets at this point. Her throat has become taut and dry, all too surprised to utter a word.

She purses her lips, opens them, but then decides against it; she can't tell Lillie about this, absolutely not. Moon now holds incredibly sensitive information in her hands, so important in fact that not even she herself knows if she should be entrusted with it. In her head, telling Hau about this would make things much easier, but judging by what he had told her earlier, this is not her story to butt into, either.

This isn't her fight. She _cannot_ push her own agenda into their growing relationship. That's what her brand new emotional instincts are telling her anyway, and what Gladion had told her back in Zeffarei a while ago.

Moon darts her eyes to Lillie, the letter, and then Lillie again.

"If you had to describe him," she tries, looking for the right words and the right question to ask. "What would you say he looks like?"

"I don't know," Lillie says, smiling. "But… I would say he must have a dashing smile, that's for sure!"

Moon groans to herself. Internally. Nearly about to die. _Arceus give her patience_.

* * *

"Goodness, that was a mighty run down the forest." Ilima strides into their improvised campsite, mostly built around where Gladion had established himself a few hours ago. He has barely moved since. "I apologize for taking so long. The Pongii are truly admirable creatures."

Hau shrugs it off, turning his dinner around over the campfire to cook it better. Gladion's meal is resting by the fire, too; he's too engrossed in his novel to pay attention to that. "It's fine, dude. You didn't miss much."

"I suppose that's good to know." Ilima turns his head to the side, where he sees Moon and Lillie under a tree, with Moon jumping up and down with her arms outstretched. "I seem to have missed _that_ , though."

Hau follows his eyes. "Ah, yeah. We were practicing with her magic earlier and she tossed her bag too high up that tree. We had to wake Moon up so she grabs it."

"No success so far, I presume?"

"She's gonna climb up, I think. She's just convincing Lillie to climb it up herself," comments the sorcerer, taking a bite of his steaming dinner. He burns his mouth, obviously, and Gladion keeps reading his book. "Ugh, that burns. Anyway, yeah; Moon's probably gonna end up climbing the tree. I doubt she'd let Lillie climb up anyway."

Ilima nods with a placid smile. "Ah, I see. They truly are remarkable women, indeed." Hau's eyebrows knit in confusion. Gladion finds his attention being pulled from the book for one second. "Moon's determination knows no bounds, does it? I wish I had been here to watch you two practice. I always heard marvelous things about Lusamine's enchantments, but I never truly got to see her full potential. I assume Lillie will someday grow to be just as powerful."

He sits down quietly and takes a small envelope out of his backpack, humming to himself as he puts the small portion of meat over the fire; Gladion and Hau share a look. Gladion is infinitely glad that Hau has picked up on Ilima's wording, too.

"Dude," cuts in Hau, not unkindly, but definitely neutral, "I've been wanting to ask this for a while, but do you have a thing for Moon? Maybe for Lillie?"

A lazy smirk rolls Ilima's lips, intoxicatingly pleasant. "Why? Since when are my love affairs of anybody's interest?"

Hau smiles. Even if his love interest is under risk of being snatched or merely courted by anybody else, Hau just can't give anyone the cold shoulder. "Nah, I ain't that interested. I mean, I'm not against gossip, but we're all Lillie's friends and… welp, he's her brother." Gladion is fuming at the prospect of such a relationship, silently seething. "He's gonna be much harder to get over. Moon jokes around with the edgelord thing but… y'know."

In hindsight, Ilima is definitely one of the least scummy people in the world, and Gladion has to give him that. Still, that doesn't mean he wants Lillie to have a charmer around her to sweep her off her feet. Gladion deep down knows that Ilima is harmless, but he seems like the pretentious, egocentric, and pretty self-absorbed type.

The rest of the world might be fine with him, and Gladion doesn't _hate_ him – he's learned to use that word a bit more carefully – but he doesn't adore him.

Ilima, as if sensing his sulking, smirks even wider. "So Gladion has a sister complex? I always thought Moon was merely joking when she said that."

"I _don't_ have a sister complex," Gladion says between gritted teeth, pretending to read when in reality his focus has been completely shifted.

"He doesn't, really, but he's an intensely caring big brother," Hau says, crawling close to Gladion to try to ruffle his hair, but Gladion growls as he does this. "And it's not like we're gonna put up a fight if you got a thing for Lillie. She's wonderful. And awesome. And sweet. And she's gonna kick ass in no time, you guys got no idea–"

Gladion grabs a bottle from his bag. "Hau, you're rambling."

"– so I get if anybody's got the hots for her. I'm not gonna stand in anybody's way even if… eh, you know what I mean. You're all looking at me like I'm obvious." Gladion isn't, but Ilima clearly is, giving him this ' _oh Hau_ ' look. "I know you ain't scum, so I'm not gonna be against you and Lillie hooking up if that's what you both want."

It's amazing how respectful Hau can be even if it goes against his very own wishes, but Gladion knows Hau is _that_ kind and understanding. He's got the best grip on his feelings out of them all, and it shows why. Gladion and Moon might have spent their lives getting stronger but Hau had probably had a long time to meditate and discover himself after that fatal accident. He shines brighter than the moon in moments like these.

Ilima, however, isn't that kind, nor that soft and understanding. A hum vibrates within his chest, and he gives Gladion an odd look while the latter drinks water, questioning his glance. His expression is _knowing_ , almost, and Gladion can see the ghost of a smirk lurking at the corners of his lips as he breathes, happy and blissful, as if he's about to destroy the whole world with a snap of his fingers.

"Hmm, I see." Ilima murmurs, thoughtful and calm. "However, I would say that my interest in females doesn't deviate in the direction of blondes…" His eyes steer to Moon, who is jumping up to a branch to grab Lillie's pouch. "But of black-haired assassins."

And Gladion, previously drinking from his bottle, chokes with his water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> S E X U A L T E N S I O N G A L O R E
> 
> This chapter literally has NOTHING but also EVERYTHING and I live for that AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA HAU AND LILLIE WERE IN LOVE EVEN BEFORE MEETING HOW FUCKING LOVELY IS THAT I sneaked the letter subplot under the story and I mean maybe it was obvious it'd be Hau BUT I HOPE NOBODY WAS EXPECTING IT BECAUSE MOON NOW HAS AN AGENDA FJLKDMSÑLA
> 
> also
> 
> Moon being such a minx and teasing Gladion even though he has no feelings for her (or does he) AND WE WILL NEVER KNOW IF SHE DID IT ON PURPOSE (maybe she was doing it on purpose who is to know I'm def not gonna write more of those closely sexually tense moments no sure tsktsktsk)
> 
> ""Ah, Gladbag saw you sneaking out one day." / Moon sighs. "And he nearly dragged me back to the palace because 'Moon you can't go explore at three in the morning that's illegal.'" Her mimicking makes Hau laugh. "He's one hell of a hypocrite when he spent so much time studying. Ridiculous edgelord." - look I have this problem where I wanna write all these dumbasses fucking around and just goofing and living in Zeffarei hanging out but we don't want this to be 78549302 chapters long so THIS WILL DO LMAOO
> 
> IAND WE HAVE ALSO ESTABLISHED A SMALL LOVE TRIANGLE though I have to say that I hate love triangles when they're melodramatic but in all fairness I feel like Ilima having a thing for Moon doesn't come from anywhere and I've been insinuating that since arc 2 and 3, kinda. Like the ending of arc 3 was kinda setting up for this LMAO 
> 
> and GLADION'S REACTION MY BOY YOU HAVE NO FEELINGS FOR HER BUT YOU'RE STILL V ALTERED THAT ILIMA THE CHARMER COULD SWEEP HER OFF HER FEET GHFJDKSPLA you can see what direction the fic is gonna take for the remaining chapters
> 
> obviously we're not gonna focus 100% on the love triangle because like I hate melodrama and we have better things to focus on but it's gonna be there at times and I'm gonna punch you with it when you least expect it, but don't worry because 1. Moon and Gladion are well above drama and petty love triangles and 2. I really just wanna make my kids love each other and Ilima is not gonna fully step in so we're cool
> 
> I just want to upset Gladion for like the 60th time this fic but don't worry :)) he won't be upset for very long
> 
> what do you mean we're going to Ludwig Town this chapter and he's gonna be upset
> 
> well yes he's gonna be upset but don't worry ;)) I have surprises in store :))) and the big colossal lona chapter is only getting closer so SEE YA SOON CHILDREN


	12. Doctor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion comes back to his hometown.

Bruises aren't meant to be reopened once they finally close, but Gladion has never been keen on following the rules.

Once upon a time, he was, so saying _never_ is a bit of a stretch; in fact, that would be who he was when he lived in this town. It's all as he left it; the seemingly everlasting sunset and the wheat glistening under the dying sun, along with some clouds befitting of winter. People around them are wearing thick clothes, scarves, and groceries; Gladion can smell the fresh buns and bread from miles away, a delicatessen too hard for him to miss.

It feels like falling right into place if that place was a literal pit of lava with a demon at the bottom.

Moon latches onto his arm, pointing at a building that he knows to be either a bakery or a pharmacy. "That building is so pretty! I never knew you came from a place as pretty as this!"

Gladion directs a demeaning look at her, which she blatantly ignores. Perhaps there are more than two demons in this town. "Why?"

"Black ugly souls can't come from pretty places. It's a statement known to all of mankind."

"No wonder yours is so pitch dark, considering you technically come from Bleakdross."

"That, my dear edgy friend, is chronologically incorrect," she indicates with a bright smile, deflecting his quip like a bullet. He musters a weak chuckle. "Besides, I'm just enjoying the views. Try to flash a smile to the neighbors– you look like you've swallowed a spider."

Behind them, Lillie blinks in a delicate deadpan. "Can't those two stop bickering for one single day?"

"Ah, it makes sense Gladion is this way. He seems to harbor few to no fond memories of this place," comments Ilima, observing the houses and townsfolk with attentive eyes. "It's a shame, though. This place has a cozy aura I can't quite explain."

Gladion throws him a withering glare from over his shoulder, and Ilima chuckles as a reply. It seems like not even his best suit, his glare, can fend off the wolves anymore; not even a mild predator like Ilima.

Moon lets go of his arm – _holy shit for how long had they walked like that?_ – and twirls ahead of them. "It's fine if you're a little tense and all that. I'd be super stiff myself if I were in your shoes." She puts her hands on her hips, grinning; her usual posture when she's about to try to cheer him up _or_ send him to the grave. "This is a difficult situation, but you're gonna be fine. We believe in you."

"Yeah, dude. We're here to support you," says Hau, coming from behind to rub his shoulders reassuringly. The gesture does little to calm him down; if anything, the proximity unnerves him more than usual in his state, but he wills himself to simply be thankful. "We're gonna be right beside you all the time."

Moon nods. "We're gonna be here forever. Like a ghost."

"Thanks," he grumbles, sighing. A silver of genuine gratitude echoes in his tired words. "I don't mean to be this moody. I just…"

"It's okay, big brother." Lillie skirts around Moon and offers him a kind smile. "You already told us all we needed to hear. We will be here for a while and then we will leave. Is that okay with you?" she asks, and he can't say no when she looks like that: bashful, worried, and a pinch _guilty_. "You don't need to visit your godfather, either. You can stick with us and–"

He holds a hand up, dismissing her point. "It's… alright." A second later, he sighs. "Fine, it _isn't_ , but it will be. It's something I have to do. I have to prove to myself that I'm over this place and Faba." Gladion's feet drag over the soil like there's a weight on his shoulder that is pushing him down. "If I don't, I will regret leaving and I will feel like a coward."

And Ilima skirts around Hau to meet Gladion's eyes. "Avoiding a person who made you suffer is not a cowardly thing to do in the slightest."

"Ugh, I know that, too." A sigh escapes him, and his figure slackens along with the air that is drawn out of him. "All I want is to make nice with myself and move on. And to move on, I have to face him."

Beside him, Moon is about to say something, but she doesn't speak any further than a sigh. Hau nods. "I mean, if that's what you wanna do, we ain't gonna stop you, dude. But you don't need to prove yourself to anyone. We all know you're awesome and super strong, even if you back off."

Gladion nearly expects him to tag some quip along, or for Moon to butt in and say something preposterous, but both of them look at him with a mix of kindness and _pity_ that he can't stand; though maybe the pity is in his imagination due to his vulnerability, and he could be painting a picture too drastic out of what should be a simple visit to his teacher, his godfather, the demon in his dreams; the shape of all his insecurities.

This is why he hates having friends sometimes; they make him feel and see things he shouldn't be seeing.

Scratch that, he loves his friends, but they do things to his pride that should be illegal.

It takes them little to no time to arrive at Faba's house, which also used to be his once upon a time. The vines on the white walls seem to have grown, and he remembers them being greener than this in winter. The house is completely silent all around, excepting the cooing of crows and magpies on the wheat fields they have left behind. The wood is tainted with the golden rays of sunset and a tint of red. The metallic pipes running by the ceiling have acquired a rich copper color, and the flamboyant sign that read _'Pharmacy'_ over the door is bitten by time and decay. Nobody has cleaned it in a while.

He looks up to the clock on the wall over the window, the one he used to look at every day he went outside. It has a thin layer of dust over the surface.

"Is this… your house?" asks Lillie, gulping. A layer of her voice quivers, uncomfortable. "It looks nice. And cozy."

Gladion sighs. "Faba had this habit of cramming anything and _everything_ into the smallest of spaces. He says it's practical." He stuffs one of his hands into his pockets while the other combs through his fringe in distress. "I guess I should knock."

But he doesn't knock. He glares at the door like it has hurt his whole family and descendants, brow knit and mouth pinched in disgust. He doesn't want to go through this. Gladion has gone up against a thousand monsters and threats before, but never in his life has he felt a void this big in his stomach at the prospect of facing his fears. Never has he wanted to run away but stay at the same time.

This place should be familiar; the demons should be tamed, and a place as peaceful as this shouldn't be causing him this much anguish. It's hard to believe that he lived here for more than a decade thinking it was paradise, and that only when he left and found other people and places did he realize this home had been a nightmare.

Faba had given life to all his imperfections, had made gold out of them, and had an untrusting man out of a happy child. Gladion doesn't want the sneers, the attempts to undermine his success. He doesn't want to go back to stage one.

From the back, Hau grimaces, knees-deep into this damp silence. He grabs his friends by the collar of their shirts. "Okay, we're gonna bounce. I wanna try malasadas and Lillie wants to visit the wheat fields."

Lillie raises an eyebrow. "I never–"

Moon tenderly grabs Lillie's wrist and leads her away along with Ilima and Hau. In a matter of seconds, everyone is gone, and he's alone to face this house. He had been here less than a year ago, having a peaceful life where everything shone if Faba hit it with the right lights. It had always been about what that man made him to be; he had been reduced to being whoever Faba wanted him to be.

If Faba so desired and Gladion had allowed him to, he would have made Gladion into the perfect gentleman, the perfect stone heart, the ideal professional. A man with a future. A man without dreams.

But when Gladion finally left, he had seen the light.

Out of Faba's reach, he could be whoever he wanted to be.

And he had become somebody else. Faba would surely see it as just one of those poor men with dreams, yet no means to make them come true. He would start criticizing him, breaking his attire down first and then his eyes, where he would read every single comma in his thoughts.

But he can't chicken out anymore. Taking a deep breath, Gladion takes a step forward and gently knocks on the door.

He's met with no response.

"The _fuck_ ," he murmurs. He had expected Faba to come out immediately, in hopes that the real thing would wipe his fears away in utter paralyzation. It's rare for Faba not to be home at this hour. He is never out of his schedule, as he would always remind him.

" _A man of worth will never be late for an appointment, there be rain or thunder. If I am ever late, you shall assume I have been hospitalized."_

Faba has always been everywhere in his head, everywhere in the night and in the day. Moon's death had haunted him for several weeks on end, but Faba's presence had pricked blood and tears out of him. Moon has always been a void; Faba is a pit of lava, condescending, narcissistic, _lonely_.

That's right. Faba had always been a lonely man, Gladion realizes. He had never stopped to think that Faba never had any friends.

Gladion's hands begin to shake. He cups the knob tentatively. What if Faba has done something stupid? What if he had gotten tired of his life, of his pretenses, of his own ego? His body could be lying there, lifeless, because Gladion left him alone _alone alone_ and maybe he shouldn't have, because perhaps he had been too judging and too self-seeking, and Faba _always_ told him to be selfless but cautious, and Gladion had gone and betrayed the teachings of his–

" _Gladion_." A hand on his, covering it warmly, strongly, molding around his on the doorknob. "Stop. You're shaking from head to toe."

The train comes to a stop, and the steam comes in the shape of a sigh. Moon's hand is stern, firm, but still warm. It feels like an anchor to reality, one that is pulling him down from the skies of hysteria and to safe, comfortable lands.

"He's not answering the door."

"I can see that."

He turns around. Moon is standing there with a displeased expression. It's a far cry from her pouts and teasing frowns. The veil of stubbornness and hellbent bickering is gone. Instead, she's touching his hand with a softness he's beginning to appreciate with each passing day.

"I thought Hau took all of you away from here," he comments, voice a tad raspy.

She shrugs. "And he did, but I wanted to check on you just in case you decide to set the house on fire in an act of revenge."

"I'm not the arsonist out of us two."

"That's whatever." She pries his hand off the knob gently, so much so he barely registers it. "Hau wanted to come too, but I thought you'd prefer it if there were fewer people around."

It's uncanny how she can be the densest person on the planet when it comes to romance but she has an oddly soft touch when delicacy is involved. It might have to do with being an assassin: deadly, but elegant. "How kind of you to be this considerate."

Moon's response is utter silence. They both stare up at the house like they're waiting for it to rain.

"Aren't you gonna knock again?" Moon asks, as though disbelieving his idle stance. "You know, when Lillie said you don't need to do this, she meant it. You don't have to torture yourself over this guy anymore."

Gladion shoves his hands into his pockets and turns away from the door to face her. "It's not as easy as ignoring it." He releases a defeated sigh and gestures to the house in front of him. "I… know I haven't been completely open about what happened in there, but–"

"That's fine," Moon says firmly. "I have never asked you, and I guess it must be hard to tell people about these things. I doubt you even knew things were bad– Lillie didn't either, and it's not like she told me about Lusamine doing all sorts of weird things to her. I don't think these things are easy to talk about, right?"

"Not particularly," Gladion grumbles, turning his head to the house again; he can hear her disapproval from where he's standing and it's making things a bit harder. "I don't like thinking about these things. It's been _months_ since I left, and I have this theory that if I simply face him one last time, then I can leave."

"The word you're looking for is _closure_ , I think."

"When did you become such a smartass?"

"Hanging out with two members of royalty and a Captain with a thesaurus in his throat really helps." Snickering, she pads a little closer to him, right to where she can look at him in the eye. "You still don't need to do this. He might not even be inside, for all you know. You're just making yourself suffer at this point. You told me he treated you like shit, didn't he?"

He hates the fact that she's right, that Ilima had been right earlier, too; he kicks a pebble on his way and takes in a big gulp of breath. Moon patiently waits it out, arms folded, head tilted, like she's got all the time in the world for him to talk. She's not demanding, but lenient. Willing to listen; willing to help.

"Faba wanted me to be this polished asshole with spotless ethics, but that version of _spotless_ only ever applied to him, so going against him in any shape or form meant getting an earful or some sort of humiliation. The moment I walk into this house, it's going to be the same cycle again." Gladion squares his jaw as if deliberately getting ready for a slap. "I don't want to go back to that life again."

In all the instances where Moon has listened to him open up a creak, she's always offered some sort of counter-narrative to headbutt some common sense into him, but she doesn't do so this time. He trusts her judgment and his own enough to know she's not about to counter his point or shame him for his feelings, but there is something in her silence that has him restless.

When she finally speaks, it's a little more candid than before. "I don't think you would ever fall back to your old habits– I know you're tougher than that. No douche is gonna get through your thick skull. I know you're better than that, but I don't think that's my field to play in and I don't wanna overstep– we're rivals, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna try to hurt you just because I'm a little slow with these family issues. This is a kinda delicate matter, I can tell." And then, she walks away, just a few steps. "I'll be here. If you need anything, all you gotta do is call."

He realizes that Moon is letting him build his boundaries again. She's giving him the same space she's always given him, being patient, being silent. Moon is thrusting into the dark, probably aimless as to what to say because he _knows_ these things, delicacy, tone, and calmness are a novelty for her.

Moon has been kind to him plenty of times before, but they have never had the object of his despair right in front of them. This is not something she can wave off with some encouragement. They are talking about the core of his childhood, the beginning of his pain, the source of many of his traumas. It's no wonder she's reluctant to overstep, even if, secretly, he would _love_ to hear those words of rare, tender encouragement from her.

So she's giving him space. Hoping that's okay. Hoping she's doing the right thing. Trusting he will know what to do. He realizes, too, that for once he doesn't know what to do, and that's he's not ashamed to admit it anymore– not now, at least.

Not when he's this vulnerable.

Gladion walks to her and gingerly reaches out and takes hold of her wrist; questioning, his touch feeling insecure. Moon visibly stiffens at this, but he says nothing.

"Don't be afraid to speak your mind," he says, a little shier than before. "You have helped me before with… _stuff_. Like that night in the boat and that other night in Bakiria. I trust you to know me enough to know what to say."

He hadn't expected to be so bold about his trust in her and neither had she. Her eyes widen just an inch. He concludes that he's said the right words and that such expression of pleased surprise in her face is _just right_.

Gladion wonders if she will make a joke out of it, if she will go back in this small step they have taken into unknown grounds. Instead, she clears her throat and lets him hold her wrist so. "You have us now. It's not like you're gonna fall back to being a little piece of shit. We've all had enough of that."

It's a middle ground he's willing to accept, but not without a fight. "You're a pure delight yourself."

Noting the sarcasm in his voice, she bites the inner side of her cheek. "Stop trying to bite me and listen to me for once," she says, rolling her eyes, none of the frost or the fire real or intended. "Hau, you and I have been friends for _ages_. It took you a while to admit it, but it's been that way for a while. We know you better than you know yourself, and you have this habit of putting way too much pressure on your shoulders. You gotta chill."

He knows she means no harm and that, again, she's _right but–_ "This is serious–"

"A serious issue, all right, but that doesn't mean you have to beat yourself up because of it." She sighs, eyes seeking his in search of an explanation that both know she won't get; not today. "Lillie and you are super similar. I understand that you want to get closure but… I don't want you to get hurt if it slaps you back on the face. If that guy manipulated you into feeling like shit, I don't want him anywhere near you. Neither I or Hau take kindly to assholes, you see."

"I know it's a weird way to deal with things," Moon is about to tell him otherwise, of course, but he shuts her up quickly. "I know it's not that healthy to even be _sympathetic_ for someone who has been consistently beating me up mentally for ages."

"It's not bad to be sympathetic," she counters, reaching out to grab his other hand– it's his _hand_ she's holding, albeit delicately, like it's made of glass. "If anything, it's something you weren't before. When we met, you were impossible to deal with. It kinda feels natural you just wanna have one last talk and leave. And if you wanna go in, I'm going in with you."

Gladion gives her an odd look. "Faba doesn't seem to be home. I might not even have a way to–"

" _Please_ , are you telling me you can't sneak in?" Moon smirks, tilting her head in a tease. She lets go of his hand, but her other wrist remains in his hold. "You know how to pick locks. I can give you a little bobby pin if you need it."

"Why would I even want to get in if Faba is not in there?"

"So you don't wanna get in?"

Gladion spares the house a little look, conflicted. As much as he wants to tell himself that the physical carcass of his nightmares is not a part of the deal, the house has a presence too big to his liking. It exists too intensely for it to be just a house, and he wonders if it's Arceus calling him to go in and explore one last time; because Gladion knows that he won't come back to this town ever again.

He sighs, extending a palm. "Give me those bobby pins."

Her grin grows and into fangs and havoc, and she reaches a hand under her shirt – which definitely does _not_ make him _feel_ too much – and hands him a single black bobby pin. "Back to basics, I see?"

"Don't make me regret this decision," he grumbles, walking to his house once more and dragging her along with him. She lets herself be carried with a chuckle. "We will take a peek and leave. Just one second. And then, we're gone."

Gladion lets go of her hand and kneels to fidget with the lock. She crouches as well. He will never admit this to her lest she teases him any further, but he had had to sneak into his home a few times this way when he was just a kid. Faba would _never_ shut up if he came back home late and had no keys to get in, so he had to get in this way.

"You know," says Moon in a low voice, "you could teach me how to do these things one day. I could use these nifty tricks when I'm in stealth mode."

Without shifting his eyes from the door, he talks. "What happened to the 'kick the door down, ask later' approach?"

"Still my personal favorite." A faint groan rumbles past his throat. She chuckles. "But it's not fair for you to know more things than me. I know a lot more than you but I still wanna know how you do that thing."

"And let you continue doing crime?"

Moon doesn't offer a quip and instead lets him work through the lock. Gladion sometimes looks at her from the side and finds her to be staring at nothing in particular. Catching Moon in lapses of silence like these is rare, so he's learned to appreciate her expressions and her occasional silence.

"You once stopped me from being too reckless and being too stubborn. I think I never properly thanked you for that," she whispers, though her voice is drowned out by the crows saying goodbye in the sky. "I hope that me being around and trying to stop you from being too edgy will serve as a thank you."

"I owed you that much," he whispers back, his voice strained in focus as he works on the lock. "You saved my life once. It's a very meager exchange, but like a friend of ours says, I scratch your back, you scratch mine."

The lock finally gives in and screeches as it opens. The smell of books, plants, and sanitizer hits his nostrils first, and then the memories that come along with it: the medical lessons, the peaceful nights with botanics under the moonlight and then the berating and humiliation, the ' _you will never be a man of any worth with your small intellect'_ and _'I will shape you into a rightful man'_.

Beside him, Moon puts a hand on his shoulder. "We will take a peek and leave. Little by little, okay?"

The house is no different from what he remembers it to be, except there's nobody inside. Every inch within the house is clean, which means Faba is not here now, but he once was. The hearth has no fire, and the kitchen has no plates to be washed, as Faba does. The bookshelves are ordered a little differently than what Gladion remembers, but most volumes on the shelves are familiar to his memory.

Moon looks around silently. Her presence doesn't disturb him or the air, somehow. She's light on her feet and even lighter with her words. "This place is… crazy cozy. I like how small it is."

"When I told Lillie I lived in a house as small as this, she nearly choked," comments Gladion with a humorless chuckle. "It's enough for two people, I guess. I have never been a fan of big spaces anyway."

Moon nods and takes up the space beside him. The door to the outside is open and lets a string of golden light stream into the house, hitting Moon on her shoulder. She has very lean shoulders and arms, some muscle here and there. She's too frail to be as strong as she is, and even if they haven't had an all-out brawl in a while, he can still remember the shape of her knuckles on his body.

"We haven't trained in a while," _she_ says, surprising him, and he soon finds out why; she's picked up a book on sword-fighting, holding it for him to grab. "Reread this guy. You're gonna need it next time."

Moon asks him where his bedroom is, and even when he insists that it has nothing of interest and that _he really doesn't want to go there_ , Moon insists that she just wants to check it out 'to see if his edgy aesthetic extends to his actual bedroom', which nearly grants her a book being thrown to her head.

Hesitant, he lets her go, and right as she disappears, the front door swings open– Gladion has no time to be scared, though, because they are familiar but _warm voices_ – not cold, not frost-bitten and calculating, but people he knows and he trusts. He looks from the bookshelves to find warm shapes, friendly colors, sunlight and smiles he's known for a while.

They timidly look at him, asking for permission to enter, and Gladion grants it with a nod. He hides a small smile – tense, all but happy – lest they see him give in to emotion.

Hau's eyes widen like saucers as he looks in from the threshold, any sense of timing forgotten instead of excitement. Gladion silently puts the book away, tucking it in the correct spot. "Dude, this place is so _small_! It's like one of those witch hideouts! Like a little pharmacy!"

"Faba _is_ a pharmacist," he comments dryly. "And we can't stand here for too long. I don't want Faba to walk in on us."

While Hau and Ilima proceed to explore the kitchen – 'Dude, look at that casserole!' 'Hau, be careful, that looks certainly expensive' – Lillie approaches Gladion. "Do you think he will notice we have come here?"

"If Hau does knock that casserole over, he will. I doubt he will think it was me, though. Robbers are part of the townsfolk at this point." Lillie nods, albeit looking alarmed by his nonchalance. Detecting this feeling, he shrugs. "Nothing worth mentioning. He will be glad nothing was stolen and he will go on with his day."

"Speaking of thieves, where did Moon go?" She looks around the small space, verdant eyes swishing from side to side and passing over the mess Ilima and Hau are making of the kitchen. "She isn't exactly fond of your godfather. If she does any damage to his property out of spite–"

"I won't stop her," he adds in, ignorant to a fault, and Lillie accepts this with a foreign degree of pleasure, nodding with a contained smile.

They exit the house approximately ten minutes later, which are still too many minutes in Gladion's opinion, but he lets them pass. Ilima comments several times on the quality of the plants and asks Gladion a few questions about botanics, thus causing them to engage in one of the most pleasant conversations they have had thus far. See, he doesn't hate Ilima; he just finds him grossly charming.

It's when the conversation is done that the group begins to move and Moon exits Gladion's room. He waits for her to catch up with him. "I trust my room is exactly like I left it. I don't want to go in and check."

"I only looked around," she says, smiling more to herself than him. "You also have very nice books."

He's not sure what to make of that, but he decides she's complimenting him in a very roundabout way. Moon brushes past him and stalks to the door, but Gladion lingers inside for a little while, observing his surroundings.

There are many places he wishes to visit in this Dominion again, and others he wishes to discover; Ludwig Town won't be one of them.

It's a very bittersweet goodbye. Last time, things had been too sudden, too dry and quick for him to feel any remorse or loss at the thought of not coming back; but with Faba not being here, Gladion guesses this is for the best.

Sensing his unease, Moon walks over to him again, saying nothing. Gladion looks at her once more. She's a bunch of inches smaller than him. "I guess I won't be seeing Faba again."

She gives him her usual knowing smirk. "And you're feeling bitter over not settling things, am I right?"

He sighs, but it's not directed at her, necessarily. "You are always right, for some ungodly reason."

In response, all she does is grab his wrist to lead him out of the house. Slowly, carefully, like the pull will hurt him and the blisters on the threshold will scar his skin.

"Maybe you could write him letters. That would be a good start."

* * *

In an attempt to overthrow Gladion's penchant bitterness and stiffness, Hau suggests they go help the townsfolk in the countryside with crop duties. He basically drags Gladion there, and whether he knows that the countryside they are approaching lies at the furthest point away from his house or not, Gladion isn't sure; he's still grateful for the distraction, even if he's completely pouting and sulking about the whole ordeal.

Moon, Ilima, and Hau quickly engage with the townsfolk and put on their straw hats to help with duties. She goes the extra mile to put a scarf over her throat and ask for one of those country working overalls to 'get into the role as much as she can', as well as tucking a piece of wheat between her lips and grabbing a basket that is near twice her size.

Hau and Ilima follow along the wheat fields under the sunset. Lillie observes them with fond eyes. "They seem to be having fun," she comments, tucking her knees a little further under her chin.

"Moon could make anything look fun, but wait until she picks up a scythe and starts terrorizing them."

He can't lie and say that wouldn't be badass, considering how big those things are in these parts; he lies by omission.

"We could join them, too, though I'm not a fan of farmwork in general." Lillie, to emphasize her point, wipes a single bead of sweat off her forehead. It's mildly warm for winter. "I will sound like a spoiled brat by saying this, but I genuinely don't wish to get dirty. We will be attending Altaria Bay's festival in a few days, too; any sort of wounds should be avoided."

She's completely right. Altaria Bay will be holding its famous Lights Festival in a pair of days, which should be enough for them to reach the town if they speed things up a little. However, Moon had argued that maybe 'Lillie and Ilima will need some training and to get some soreness into their legs', so she had marched into the fields along to Hau's request and asked for the tools to help the townsfolk.

As always, her objectives are all about gain, and whatever good she might trigger for this reason is merely incidental, but welcome.

"I hope you will be attending the festival yourself," comments Lillie, more accusingly than serious, but still a pinch teasing. "All of us will be attending. There will be so many things to do and see there– I think there will be fireworks, too! I have never seen fireworks in my life."

"Of course I will go," responds Gladion, arching an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I? I don't like packed places but I suppose it can't be _that_ bad, right?"

"Oh, I didn't mean that." Her figure shrinks in doubt. "I… thought you would have certain reservations about coming with us because of today. I assumed you might be a little burnt out."

Leave it up to Lillie to be this open about feelings he hasn't even expressed out loud yet she has all the rights to be suspicious about. While today hasn't been as bad as it could have been and he's relieved beyond relief that Faba was busy minding his business elsewhere, he has the right to be a little tired– which he is. Walking into his house had been a voluntary decision but not an easy one, and having to relive some of his childhood memories with all the manipulation and deceit enraptured in them had been mind-numbing.

Is he ready to tell Lillie all about the manipulation, the deceit, the tears, and the pain? Not now. He hasn't told Hau yet, and neither has he told Moon, at least fully. He still doesn't know how he feels about most of what he's lived in Ludwig Town, so he has no way of expressing things correctly other than the superficial, obvious signs of abuse.

He will get there someday, maybe when he writes that letter Moon had mentioned.

All Gladion does is sigh, throwing his weight back to the tree they are sitting under. The silence is filled by Moon's incomprehensible blabbering and the sounds of wheat being snapped in twain.

"Do you…" Lillie clears her throat delicately. "Do you want to come back here? Do you miss your hometown?"

Lillie certainly doesn't cut corners when it comes to asking the tough questions. "I miss some people in particular, some places in particular and some _foods_ in particular, but I have been in too many places to miss this town. It's too small for me. It's too small for anybody I have met thus far, maybe even you yourself." Gladion breathes in; he breathes out. "I can't fathom coming back here and living the life I used to live. The life I'm living right now is great. I wouldn't trade that for anything in the world."

Gladion's eyes shift to Moon, Hau, and Ilima, but Lillie realizes his eyes are perched in one individual in particular more than anyone else: Moon. She's always been under the impression that his bond with her is the strongest, fatally belied by their bickering, but they are closer than anyone else; after all, they met first.

Lillie knows Hau is their best friend too, but his relationship with Moon has always been a degree and a half different from what he has with Hau. And the way he's looking at her now, eyes deprived of animosity and simply _bare_ , soft and looking, makes this even more evident.

Gladion hears Lillie hum under her breath, and when he turns his eyes to her, he finds her to be squinting in suspicion. "I see." The suspicion fades, and all that is left is a smile, crooked on one side. Knowing. The worst kind of smile. "You are truly fond of Hau and Moon, aren't you?"

"Don't tell them that. They will call me names and make a joke out of it." He would say that Moon is especially prone to that behavior, but he thinks that might have changed. "We have been together through hell and back. Pain does make bonds stronger. If anything, all I want now is to protect them, even if Moon is stubborn about not needing my help sometimes."

When Gladion thinks of his friends lately, there is something else to it that he had never really put into perspective, that being _protection_. He knows neither Hau or Moon need his help to get by, but he's sometimes wondered, along with his occurrences about his future, where he stands in that line: will he be watching from the shadows with an uncertain future? Will he sit atop a throne? Will he join the battlefield as a warrior or as an Emperor?

There's no future without them in it, that's for sure.

And he needs to protect them.

"Moon always used to tell me you were the most arrogant person on this planet, but that you kept your ego to yourself because of pride. And that you never wanted to stick to anybody because you were a lone wolf," Lillie explains, sighing with a fond smile. Those comments, albeit light-hearted, are nothing to smile about. "Moon was probably exaggerating, but… when I met you, I thought you were as uncompromising as she had said. And I found it admirable."

Gladion nearly chokes with air. "Admirable? How is that admirable?"

"I used to believe that being detached would save you from disbelief. Mother used to behave like that and she was never unhappy or dissatisfied– but she was never happy, either." Lillie's eyes flicker with the embers of a forlorn memory. "It was perpetual neutrality, and I thought that I would feel better if I followed Mother's rules to become like her. I didn't want to be sad about not having friends or not being able to perform magic."

Lillie turns to him, chin on her knees, but he finds her to be smiling in understanding. It's rather strange for a girl as happy, cheerful, and optimistic as Lillie to admit she had found him _cool_ when, in hindsight, he had probably been a little bit of a dick at times. Not all the time, because Faba's teachings had been and still are ingrained deep within his system; but he had had some low moments.

"Moon is independent and brave, but always happy. She's always bouncing around. There's nothing nor anybody that could stop her, even if she was lonely. And you… well, you were the same. You were lonely, even if you had friends. That was what Moon told me." A sigh escapes her, long and drained. "But then… I began to observe you three. And I realized that I don't need to be alone or heartless to be happy, because I have all of you. Life is a little boring when you take no risks, wouldn't you agree?"

A few months ago, Gladion would have disagreed with that notion completely. However, seeing how long the road has become and how many people he has by his side now, he can't counter it.

His sphere is small, and his world is tiny compared to that of Moon and Ilima, who have probably been to more places than he has. One day, he might expand his frontiers even more; play with the limits, grow over everything he knows, and stand taller than the sun.

He can't be held back by this little town he's in anymore. Even when everything is golden and copperish, it doesn't shine the same way as the colors of his friends, the laughter of a certain assassin, and the grins of two certain sorcerers.

A voice, gentle as the zephyr, breezes from the field to his ears. "I would say you look charming and beautiful with these garments on, Moon. They make no justice to your beauty, though."

Moon, who had been picking some wheat seeds from a puddle of water, raises an eyebrow. "Get your perverted agenda off my workplace. I have wheat to pick."

Ilima, baffled, blinks at a ridiculous speed. "I… didn't mean it to sound that way. I was merely expressing my enchantment when it comes to your aspect and beauty. Your grace truly hypnotizes me."

She pats her hands off some dirt on the old overalls. There is a splash of mud on her cheek. "The clothes really add to the look. The hat looks a little weird on you, though." Moon carelessly flicks the hat off his head. It plops to the ground miserably, but she picks it up to put it over her own. The shadow over her face grows in intensity. "There. More shade for me, more sunlight for you."

And she stalks off to the farmhouse with a basket full of wheat over her head to the rhythm of a frantic soldier.

Hau, grimacing, walks over to Ilima and pats his shoulder. The Captain is speechless. "Dude, that hurt my soul to watch. I'm gonna be crying for ages. It was painful to witness."

From the shade of a tree, Gladion cackles to himself in amusement.

Maybe Ilima tagging along with them wouldn't be that bad if they got to see such mortification and confusion in his expression more often.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter
> 
> _THIS CHAPTER_
> 
> I get emotional over almost every chapter of this arc because it reflects the kids' progress and Gladion especially in this chapter he. he. he's so SO soft for his friends and the fact that we're EXACTLY where he begun but he now has friends (maybealoveinteresttoobutwe'lltalkaboutitnextchapter) and he has a future and he's so fond of his bros and THEY'RE ALL FRIENDS AND HAVING FUN AND BEING DUMB I LOVE HIM SO MUCH
> 
> also did Gladion and Moon
> 
> hold hands for a very brief period of time
> 
> this is supposed to be a CHRISTIAN FIC (sweats bc of next chap)
> 
> "When she finally speaks, it's a little more candid than before. "I don't think you would ever fall back to your old habits– I know you're tougher than that. No douche is gonna get through your thick skull. I know you're better than that, but I don't think that's my field to play in and I don't wanna overstep– we're rivals, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna try to hurt you just because I'm a little slow with these family issues. This is a kinda delicate matter, I can tell." And then, she walks away, just a few steps. "I'll be here. If you need anything, all you gotta do is call." - MOON HAS GROWN SO MUCH SHE IS SO TACTFUL NOW
> 
> "It's not bad to be sympathetic," she counters, reaching out to grab his other hand– it's his hand she's holding, albeit delicately, like it's made of glass. "If anything, it's something you weren't before. When we met, you were impossible to deal with. It kinda feels natural you just wanna have one last talk and leave. And if you wanna go in, I'm going in with you." - THEY ARE HOLDING HANDS AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA THEY'RE SO GROSSLY CLOSE AND FOND OF EACH OTHER
> 
> "There are many places he wishes to visit in this Dominion again, and others he wishes to discover; Ludwig Town won't be one of them." - you are doing SO WELL MY BABY
> 
> "In response, all she does is grab his wrist to lead him out of the house." - we're back to the wrist bs siGH
> 
> "Altaria Bay will be holding its famous Lights Festival in a pair of days, which should be enough for them to reach the town if they speed things up a little." - does Lights Festival sound romantic because it's definitely gonna be :)
> 
> "Gladion's eyes shift to Moon, Hau, and Ilima, but Lillie realizes his eyes are perched in one individual in particular more than anyone else: Moon. She's always been under the impression that his bond with her is the strongest, fatally belied by their bickering, but they are closer than anyone else; after all, they met first." - drinks Foreshadowing for Next Chapter tea
> 
> "And the way he's looking at her now, eyes deprived of animosity and simply bare, soft and looking, makes this even more evident." - GLADION
> 
> "There's no future without them in it, that's for sure. / And he needs to protect them." - G L A D I O N
> 
> "I would say you look charming and beautiful with these garments on, Moon. They make no justice to your beauty, though." / Moon, who had been picking some wheat seeds from a puddle of water, raises an eyebrow. "Get your perverted agenda off my workplace. I have wheat to pick." - All men in this fic are great and then there's Moon denying them of any pleasure
> 
> also next chapter is like THE FUCKING CHAPTER. IT'S THE SUPREME LONASHIPPING CHAPTER. IT'S LIKE LONGER THAN 10K IT'S VERY BIG AND PRETTY ROMANTIC AND STUFF HAPPENS AND I CAN'T BEGIN TO EXPLAIN HOW BIG THAT CHAPTER IS
> 
> ILL JUST SAY THERE'S
> 
> \- MORE HANDHOLDING  
> \- FIREWORKS  
> \- AND ROMANCE
> 
> I mean legit romance. and lots of fluff. like legit lots of fluff. so much fluff you'll die. like IT'S THE BIGGEST CHAPTER IN THE WHOLE SERIES. maybe the third biggest and we haven't gotten to the other two. LET'S GO GUYS AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA


	13. Fireworks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group enjoys the festival at Altaria Bay. Under the fireworks and the starlit sky, a new couple emerges and Gladion realizes something about himself. And it has a great deal to do with Moon.

"How can they be late? They arrived at the hotel before we did!" Hau drums his foot on the ground, then proceeds to dig his orange shoe into the ground in impatience. "We've been here for ten minutes and I can _smell_ the malasadas from here. Moon was all like 'wait for us or we're gonna murder you' but a man has his priorities!"

"It's a miracle we got to the hotel and nobody recognized us," sighs Gladion. "Especially considering that absurd picture hat Moon was wearing."

"She said it would hide her face, and it for certain did," comments Ilima, laughing softly. "Maybe she will come with that picture hat as well? She will also help Lady Lillie dress up, correct? I don't think I have seen Lady Lillie dressed up for celebrations of this kind before, so that should be interesting."

Ilima's concept of celebration is what Gladion has always known to be a simple fair. It doesn't quite classify as a festival other than the warm paper lamps, the steamy smell of chicken and sugar lingering in the air, and the oddly pleasant temperature outside. Altaria Bay has reserved part of its territory to host a string of stands with games and food along the sea, promising fireworks and the best of foods to perch one's eyes on. Everything is wood, orange lights, starlight, and sweetness.

Hau had been more attracted by the prospect of malasadas than anything else, so his impatience can be easily explained and justified. It does smell good. It might be that the very mild chill in the air compliments the warm smells and cheery music in the distance, and that he can hear the distinct merry-go-round of cotton sugar and syrup somewhere; this night feels especially nice.

At least they are wearing proper clothes. Gladion's jacket is nice and thick, enough for the gusts of frosty wind coming from the sea. Hau, constantly complaining about the cold temperatures, has gotten himself a scarf that is matching with Ilima's, both pale yellow. Gladion has a hunch this had been Hau's doing; yellow doesn't suit Ilima that well.

"At least it's not snowing here. One would have thought the blizzard would have left some snow at its wake, but that's not the case tonight." Ilima whimsically holds a hand up to the snowless and rainless sky. "How peculiar."

"Dude, it's great that it ain't raining tonight. I bet Moon and Lillie are gonna come all dolled up and nice and they'd start screaming the second they get their dresses wet."

"That, my friend, is wrong." A voice says from the path, walking towards the entrance of the festival. "And also kinda insulting."

Lillie and Moon approach the group with practiced ease and infuriating leisurely pace. Their expressions are completely different, as where Lillie is shy and visibly shrunk in what he guesses is embarrassment, Moon is smug and proud of herself; she gives Lillie an opportunistic push in Hau's direction, and she sighs out and gives Hau a lopsided _here-it-is_ smile.

Lillie wears a white kimono with blue flowers painted on the fabric, along with deep green leaves and white petals spread on the thick dress. Gladion has heard Lillie ask Moon about the Karee Empire's lifestyle, and fashion had come into the conversation pretty quickly.

Moon has never stood out for her sense of style, but Lillie had become engaged enough in the appeal that it resulted in the beautiful dress Hau is very much enamored with. Though that might have to do more with the bearer of the dress than the actual garment.

Hau treads close to her, steps careful and measured. "Woah. You look like one of those fairytale princesses!"

Lillie's cheeks blister deeply with crimson, but she doesn't tear her eyes off her friend. At the back, Moon gives her a pair of thumbs up, winking. "I… thank you very much. Moon has an uncanny hand with colors."

Hau and Lillie have a very silent exchange of gazes that makes Gladion really _not_ want to be there. She looks stunning, and Hau is trying _very_ hard to not squeal over it, whereas Ilima has simply complimented her like any human being would.

And Moon…

She walks to Gladion with a pleased smirk, clearly proud of her work with Lillie. There is a sway of her hips that is either make pretend or her way of emphasizing her victory. Gladion looks at her in playful indignation. "You're wearing your uniform from the Springblossom Academy."

Moon isn't wearing anything new, despite the minutes they have allegedly taken to dress up and thus be late. Her _ao dai_ is the same as the one she wears back in Zeffarei, but Gladion is ashamed to admit he _thinks_ this one might be new. Whenever they had indulged in sparring duels, anytime she fought with her uniform it'd always have a few cuts on the sleeves that she never bothered sewing back together.

Gladion had procured most of those cuts on her clothes. Not seeing them on her sleeves or neck is alarming and strangely irritating. He had been a little too proud of those.

"It's not mine– at least _that_ uniform is comfortable." Moon presses her hands on her hips. "Lillie forced me into this one she bought and it's grossly itchy. I feel like I've got needles poking into my arms and hips."

Lillie turns from Hau to Moon with a sugar-coated sneer. "You wanted to come with your usual clothes and we both know that could _not_ happen."

Moon puffs her cheeks and huffs. "Hey, I just like to walk comfortably! It's not my fault your stupid etiquette interferes with my philosophy!" She gestures at Hau, Gladion, and Ilima with a slight frown. "Look at them! They didn't even dress up for us either!"

Gladion leans towards her with a smirk, making use of his height to tease the shit out of her. "Why would we dress up for you? You're wearing your academy's clothes. It's cheating."

"We weren't very concerned with this dress code you talk about. I don't believe it's reglementary to dress in any particular way, either." Ilima looks at Lillie with a smile that radiates charm and undeniable pleasure. "Lady Lillie looks radiant tonight. Had I known about this, and I would have worn something fancier."

Moon pouts; that's exactly when Gladion realizes that, out of all colors on Earth, her lips are painted with a glossy red.

If Gladion were to be sensible, he would look away immediately when he felt that familiar _twitch_ ; it's a physical reaction that he can't live down because the color on _her_ makes her all sorts of things that he shouldn't be imagining; it's driving him insane. The color looks too well on her and it bothers him and his _body_. He feels giddy, nervous, and a little bit, just a teensy bit warmer than usual.

He went through this with her stupid bathrobe, and now it's her lips; the fact that she bites her lip so often makes the whole ordeal about ten times worse.

"In any case," Ilima's voice cuts through his reverie like a knife. He might have realized he's been staring at her for a few seconds, because he's smiling like a shark in a tank. "We should get going. I have heard plenty of things about several gem shops in this fair and I'm rather curious to visit them."

At this, Moon hurries over to him, eyes wide open. "There are gem shops here, too?"

Ilima takes it upon herself to guide her away from the group with a hand on her lower back. Gladion hunches his shoulders and proceeds to bite back the fact that he _hates_ the image much more than he'll ever admit.

The fair is, as Gladion had assumed, _packed_ with people, and Ilima makes things a little easier by excusing himself a few minutes into their exploration, all to chat with an acquaintance he had seen in the crowd. That allows them plenty of space to maneuver and look around as they please– which they could do before too, but Gladion doesn't quite enjoy his day if somebody has their hands on Moon.

He also makes the executive decision to pretend as if he _never_ thought that.

Moon grabs Lillie's shoulder and hurries to a stand filled with something sparkly and shiny; it was bound to grab Moon's attention quickly. "Those are the necklaces I told you about!"

Lillie gasps softly. "Arceus, they _are_ pretty!"

Curious about this, Hau and Gladion decide to walk close. The seller of the jewelry has a beard and a very unkempt appearance, but the apparel displayed before them is anything but. About fifty necklaces of all colors imaginable and materials lie for Moon's eager eyes to take in. Lillie is equally as entranced as well, and while Gladion never thought Lillie would have this vibe to her, it does seem like Moon's influence rubbed off on her too.

Hau gingerly takes one of the necklaces into his hand and eyes it with wide eyes. "Woah! Ain't that one of those creepy gems? The ones that eat your soul and give you super weird nightmares?"

What Hau is holding is the named _'Gengar Star_ ', a purplish pearl with iridescent tones that shine in multiple colors, particularly white and confoundingly black. Gladion has read a fair amount of information about this gem in that damn Kareean book with no rights to be so phenomenal.

People from that Empire had once speculated that an ancient god by the name of Giratina had plunged all its power into these pearls, which had been built as vessels to encapsulate the souls of the Gengar, a predatory creature that could cause nightmares and despair to anybody who looked into its eyes. Many people in the actual Kareean Empire had debunked this truth, but the rumor had persisted until this very day.

Gladion shakes his head and grabs the necklace from his hands before Moon can even get close to it. "It's been debunked many times that it was a very silly rumor. I doubt a pearl can make you have nightmares."

Much to his surprise, Moon nods as well and gently takes the necklace from his hands. "I once tried to sleep with one of those, but it never worked, so I bought _another_ , and it didn't work either. When I slept with like, five of them on me and absolutely _nothing_ happened, I felt conned."

Lillie puts a soft hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry those gems never gave you nightmares. It must have been a true pain for you."

Moon fails to see the sarcasm; Gladion and Hau share a chuckle. "It was! I spent good money on them! Maybe two mission's worth on coins."

"That's what you get for tempting fate," Gladion says, taking the necklace from her and placing it where it used to be. "Isn't it a saying in the Karee Empire to not take risks too dangerous lest Haunter springs its claws on you?"

Moon only grins in response. "I like going against those silly legends– eh?" Her grin disappears all at once. "Wait, how do you know that? Have you been watching me sleep? We agreed I don't talk in my sleep, do I?"

"No, you don't," says Lillie with a suspicious risen eyebrow, but Gladion detects a pinch of mirth in her eyes. "You truly are wise, big brother."

Well, _fuck_. In his attempt to appear smart and, very very _subconsciously_ just maybe impress her, Gladion had gone ahead and said too much information on an Empire that he should know _nothing_ about. Moon is looking at him with equal amounts of suspicion, maybe because this is not the first time she's caught him in the act.

"I read it in books in the library. It was in my last exam." No, it wasn't. "And I had to learn it very thoroughly." No, he didn't have to do that; he doesn't even remember what his last exam had been about.

Moon's suspicion wears off; Hau and Lilie, however, share a complicit gaze that Gladion doesn't feel very safe about. "Uh-huh. You just wanted to be a smartass and show off." His jaw clenches; she closes her eyes in satisfaction. "I bet you think you can beat me on my own homeland's trivia because you can't beat my ass in a battle."

"Oh, don't worry about that," he smirks, leaning over her with his hands on his pockets. "I'm gonna beat you up next time we battle. Maybe you won't be so happy about falling into the river this time around."

Hands on her hips, she stands up to him like absolutely nobody else can: grinning under him, lightly on her tiptoes, too close to where he can see the red on her lips all too well. "Oh, really? You're too confident, Gladbag. And I like kicking my prey when they're cocky– it hurts them much more."

Deep into the banter, he leans just an inch closer, teeth bared like a wolf. "Oh?"

Lillie coughs. "You _two_ , no need to bicker in the middle of the street."

Hau, though, dares to snicker as Gladion and Moon carefully pull away. "They're gonna end up tearing each other apart if we let 'em go at it."

"I won't kick him where it hurts out of respect for Lillie and Altaria Bay," she concedes. She points a finger at him. "You, sir, however, are another story."

And with a chuckle from him and a smirk from her, they part and take to other parts of the fair. Moon and Hau have stopped a little behind the siblings to eye several types of biscuits being sold in a cinnamon-scented stand. Lillie and Gladion have chosen to walk a few steps ahead and look over a pretty uninteresting stand full of paper and pencils to write with.

Moon and Hau eventually reach them, and the malasada she had been snacking on previously gets stuck in her throat and, between choking gasps for air, Moon asks the vendor for one sheet of paper and a pencil, and then snatches Hau by the collar of his shirt and drags him elsewhere.

Lillie and Gladion watch the scene with skepticism. "What could Moon be up to so early into the festival?"

Gladion merely turns to the stand again because he doesn't want an answer; however, from the corner of his eye, he watches Moon whispering something to Hau and giving him the papers and the pencil, and Hau's face suddenly _brightens_ like it's the sun and his eyes are about to eat the entire galaxy with its light.

Hau rushes to them after that; more specifically, he rushes towards Lillie, grabbing her hand. "Moon just told me there's this place where they make cotton-candy stuffed malasadas!"

Gladion's nose scrunches in absolute disgust; Lillie squeals in delight. "Cotton candy in a pastry! That must be delicious!"

Hau giggles, chuckles, and laughs and smiles and grabs Lillie's hand to himself, who nods and lets herself be carried by Hau, who points to the end of the fair's avenue with his cheeks stained red. "We're gonna go look for that stand! I bet that's gonna taste amazing, so we'll be right back! Uh, unless you wanna come, I guess–"

Moon waves a hand at them, smiling. "Go ahead, you two. We're not gonna get cavities just because of that ungodly treat."

"Yeah… keep it to yourself," says Gladion, voice hoarse in disappointment that Lillie out of all people would like something that gross. "Go get your malasadas before I get a sugar high. If you get your arteries clogged, it won't be our fault."

Hau and Lillie giggle and salute at them playfully as they run deeper into the fair, disappearing in the night and leaving Gladion alone with Moon. He didn't think they would stay around as a group the whole night, but they have left too quickly and he has this horrible feeling Moon has something to do with that.

He slowly turns his face to her and finds her to be smirking to herself in absolute proud silence.

"What did you do?" he asks, equal parts playful and mildly terrified.

"Give them one last push in the right direction. If they don't get together by the end of tonight, I'll go insane. I've pulled enough at the strings and my fingers are sore," she says as she stretches her arms with a faint groan.

Gladion wonders how much it would take for her to teach him how on Earth she can cause so much trouble in one hour. Maybe that way he can help her be a little less chaotic. "What exactly did you do? He was _beaming_ like a kid on his birthday."

Moon shakes her head in response and holds a hand up. "That can wait. First things first, now that Lillie's not here, I gotta take this off and put on something comfortable. I wouldn't even mind the _ao dai_ if it wasn't _this_ itchy."

Gladion chuckles. "Did you really lead them away just because you wanted to change into comfortable clothes?"

Moon grins good-naturedly, the kind that often blinds him. "I like it when things go according to Arceus' plans, and _mine_ too."

She takes him to a secluded point of the festival where no people are passing, so desolate he for a second thinks she's about to dispose of a corpse and dig it six feet under, all under the pretense that maybe she needed to get Lillie some jewelry; but all she does is kindly ask him to wait for her, and five minutes later, she's sporting her classy traveling clothes plus that old traveling gray cloak she can't seem to get rid of.

Moon hands him the other clothes, folded into a neat bunch. "You get extra points if you find somewhere to burn these. I ripped it somewhere by accident."

"We can find somewhere to do that while you tell me how and _what_ you told Hau to make him drag my little sister away so quickly."

"Why? Is somebody admitting to having sister com–"

" _Moon_."

She chuckles and folds her arms. She has a certain saunter to her step that gives away her pride; no matter what he tells her, she's still gonna be arrogant about the issue and probably tease him mercilessly for his interest. She's a smidge too stubborn.

Moon chuckles and throws him a teasing gaze, all from the corner of her eyes. "Let's say Hau and Lillie kinda go way back. Like, super _way back_ ," she explains, bouncing on her heels to spring right before him. The orange lights of the festival hit her too warmly to be her, almost. "Hau has very pretty handwriting, so I told him he should write some sappy stuff to Lillie on a letter."

"That's a ridiculous idea," Gladion offers, and Moon nods as if she knows this to be true. "Why give her a letter when he can tell her? Is he _that_ shy?"

Moon snickers. When she looks back at him, she has a fearsome grin stretched all across her face. "Not really. Let's just say she's gonna _love_ his handwriting. She's gonna find it familiar."

"Familiar?" he knits his brow, and for a second, Moon's expression slackens just an inch, maybe fearing he's not catching on. "What does his handwriting have to do with the let–"

Oh.

 _Oh_.

Moon watches the coin drop on his head with a glowing smile, his eyes widening and his lips falling parted with disbelief. "No _way_ in hell that's true."

She laughs merrily and treads into the festival grounds again with a bouncy skip to her step. "I can't believe I found out earlier than you did. That's _hilarious_."

" _He_ was her penpal? That sweet guy she was smitten with?"

"I mean, it makes a lot of sense if you think about it. I haven't stopped and tried to put the timelines together, but Hau is the sappiest guy we know. Only he'd pull that off, making a Princess fall for him with _letters_. It's the perfect love story for those two lovebirds." Moon twirls her index around, caught in her own thoughts. Walking a few inches behind her, he finds himself captivated by it all, mulling over her words and processing that, indeed it makes _perfect sense_. "Besides, it's not like I'm gonna force them to it. I'm just giving it a lil' push."

"Oh, as if you weren't having fun with that." Gladion rolls his eyes humorously, and she narrows her eyes to a deadpan that he deflects expertly. "And who says it will work? They're at a festival. This is not the ideal place for a confession."

"True." She points to the sky. "But there are gonna be fireworks later."

That's right, too. Though Gladion doesn't know how good a confession would be under all the noise and cracking of the fireworks, that counts as romantic in some people's books. Moon certainly sees it that way, and he's nobody to stop her.

Gladion's eyes dart around, scanning all around him. There are several places selling food and antiques, as well as a few stands with fishing ponds and the classic dart games with balloons. Maybe he could try one of those out and win Moon a plushie, just to see if he can get a reaction out of her that way. The way she blushed during the cooking contest when he simply _touched_ her cheek had been… _adorable_ , almost, and he hasn't been able to get that image out of his head ever since.

If she can make him blush and act like a fool, then so can he. "I guess we should go look for them anyway and take a look around here. I refuse to leave this place without trying some food out."

Moon nods and walks by him in silence as she looks around. There are a few stands offering honey treats to people passing by, but she notices a very peculiar detail that moves her focus to another different subject entirely, that being Gladion.

Then, she moves her eyes to the people passing by, focusing on their interlocked hands.

"Yo, Gladbag," Moon gives him a playful, troublesome smile. "Hold my hand."

His eyebrows sink in confusion, but not absolute refusal. In their many instances of partaking in physical contact, they had _never_ ventured any further than each other's wrists, aware that handholding territory is a little too much for each other to step into.

Moon, however, as eager as she is to headbutt her way through walls and buildings, is offering him her hand. He wonders if it's as warm as he's sometimes imagined.

His heart skips a beat, but he shoves that reaction into his vault. "Why?"

Moon's eyes crinkle at the edges in pure unaltered fun. "I bet they'll think we're a couple if we do this, and they'll end up giving us free samples." With her thumb, she points to a particular stand selling honey. "Let's test it out at least once. They're not gonna turn us down."

Gladion decides to entertain her. "What if they _do_ turn us down?"

"We can set the stand on fire, blame an arsonist, and burn off that ungodly _ao dai_ from earlier."

He doesn't know why _that_ premise alone convinces him, even if it's a very obvious joke, but he clasps his hand around hers decisively, like he will walk with her into a fire if she so desires; seeing she squeezes his hand in glee, he's not the only one a little too excited about this, even if it's just _a joke_ and it has absolutely _no_ romantic implications.

They just have their hands clasped around each other's. Nothing serious. Nothing to get clammy and nervous about even if it's _her_ and her smile has grown an inch softer.

"Deal." They start to walk towards the stand. "But if they ask us how we met, you do all the talking."

"A meager price to pay for a treat as delicious as that, _darling_." Arceus, when she says that it does things to his head; more so now that she has her lips coated in red. "Let's test our first victim."

The vendor doesn't even look at their hands when he sees them, and he hands out the sticks with caramel and honey with little to no questions asked, other than the usual and by now unavoidable 'you are such a cute couple' spiel. Moon nibbles on her honey stick without letting go of his hand, and he calls himself a hypocrite for calling Hau's cotton candy malasada a cavity driller. Honey and caramel is as gross and sticky as it sounds, but Moon makes it out of the snack unscathed.

It had been a very nice, rich honey with a deep flavor, but the vendor refused to tell them the brand, chuckling under his hand. Gladion wonders what that could be about.

When they have parted from the stand, Moon lets go of his hand for a second to stretch her legs a little and readjust her cloak around her shoulders. His hand feels cold, suddenly, and too empty.

"That was awesome! He bought it!" Moon grins, walking alongside him. Her hands fall lax to her sides. "We could maybe try it again later to get more free food. I wanna go play some– eh?"

Gladion's hand has unconsciously sneaked around hers again, clasping her fingers under his tenderly and gently. Her fingers mold under his as though it's magic, and he curls her hand into his protection like he misses the warmth and cherishes her presence. Gladion treasures the way her eyes widen, how her lips part in askance, and how she can't look any barer and close under the lights of the fair.

There is a request for an explanation in her eyes, but she doesn't pull away even when he doesn't explain himself right away. Her fingers slowly twist to fold around his, reciprocating the gesture silently.

"Just so you don't get lost," he stumbles to explain. It's a very transparent lie that she can undoubtedly see through; he pretends this is not true and that this will save him from the twists and flips of his stomach, from the way he has the foreign feeling she fits just _right_ whenever he surrounds her: be it his arms or his hand. "We should stay together in case we see Lillie and Hau."

Moon shakes her head curtly, smiling. "I'm _not_ gonna get lost." Her voice is impossibly teasing, but also warm.

He gives her hand a tentative, reckless squeeze. "I know you won't."

It's natural, to hold her like this. It feels simply right and pleasant to hold her a little closer tonight. Like she's meant to be there, by his side; he wonders for how long his body has known before his mind did.

She's always been more knowing than he has; maybe she has the answer, but simply doesn't want to tell him. Part of him thinks Moon doesn't pay attention to the romantic conventions that surround hand-holding; though when he catches sight of the little smile pulling at her lips, it might as well be that she's enjoying it.

Moon releases a very quiet sigh. "You have really warm hands. It's nice." Her comment is light and airy. "I always thought you'd have cold hands, like those vampires from the books, or the sea monsters from the legends. It's pleasant."

Gladion, ever the opportunist, cranes his head to look at her thoroughly. "Have you been thinking about how my hands would–"

"That's _irrelevant_ ," Moon comments between gritted teeth, turning her face to the side. "You're just being too kind tonight and it's making me super confused. We look like a silly couple holding hands, it's disgusting."

"But we're _not_ a couple."

"Indeed, we're not a couple," she repeats, nodding all too vigorously. "That's too sappy. We're just holding hands so we don't get lost, right?"

Gladion looks at her in the eye, for she's turned to him and this is the first time she's looked this shy, this superficially charming and exuberant but with eyes so full of twinkles and stars he can't tear his eyes off from her. There's a lining of delicacy, a lining of brazen tease, but most of it is wondrous, curious, and he has to wonder if she believes his lies.

If she would ever consider this, their locked hands, as his way of showing affection to her. But the more he gazes into her eyes, people walking by them putting the world's existence at a standstill, he's convinced she's welcoming his touch just as much as he's craving hers.

Gladion gives her a curt nod, playing along. "Exactly," he says, tugging at her so she follows him through the crowd. "Let's go play those games before this place gets crowded. The fireworks should start soon."

Moon and Gladion end up spending a little too much time at the games, mostly because of their insistent, unspoken bet in which one tries to persistently beat the other in whatever thing they stumble with: Moon beats him at darts; Gladion destroys her with the net fishing; Moon wins him a plushie with the face of a Gengar, 'See? It's as edgy as you are'; Gladion wins her _two_ plushies, one with the shape of a beige owl and another with the shape of a cat with a coin on its forehead 'Look, it's a gold digger, like you'; Moon wins in the balloon popping booth and Gladion gets a solid win with a small memory game.

They also stumble with a vendor trying to con them with the ball-under-a-paper-glass and Moon kicks his booth up to shambles while Gladion chases after him to get their money back. They decide to not tell anyone about this incident.

Their battle continues, growing in competition and its ridiculousness. At some point, they are presented with a hammer-on-chi-sensor game, where Moon hits the sensor so hard it cracks at the top. Gladion, giving her a merciful snicker, hits the sensor even harder and the upper part of the machine blows up spectacularly, with the perpetrators running away hand in hand.

After that, they settle for more modest goals. She sticks two marshmallows into her mouth, and Gladion sticks three. Gladion is up to five when he nearly chokes as Moon swallows the six of them in one go. After that, they decide to continue their competition in the Keeball box game, where they throw small Kee berries into boxes to get as many berries as possible.

Gladion ends up winning this one, and when they are asked what they will do with the berries, he takes them to a beverage booth and tells the waiter to make two milkshakes out of the berries while they bicker over who won the most berries in the Keeball game.

After the milkshakes have been served and finished, they walk further into the festival's district, hand in hand under the stars and the warm lights strung over the booths and stands. "I call bullshit. No way you've won more games than I have. You've lost your mind."

"I haven't, it's a matter of simple calculation. We were in a tie before the Keeball game, and I should be counting you coughing out half of your Kee-shake as a win because I managed to do that by telling a joke."

"An edgelord like you growing a sense of humor is worthy of a scientific award if anything. I refuse to accept defeat," she says, stubborn as a mule. He wonders how she manages to deflect the smallest of his victories while managing to amuse him in how fake she is about the issue. "You're just bitter because I got you a befitting plushie."

Said plushie's arm is peeking out from the cover of his backpack. "And I got you one just as fitting. And a very cute owl."

The cat's cotton whiskers are an inch out of her backpack. "But you hit less stuff than I did. Your aim is faulty. I thought that you were gonna hit me for one second."

"Maybe that's because I _wanted_ to," he growls, smirking at her. Gladion gives her hand a little yank to push her to where he can glare down at her. "I would be disappointed if you didn't dodge it."

Attempting to not give in and brawl things out there, they reach the end of the fair very abruptly, with Moon gasping and involuntarily squeezing his hand under hers. Altaria Bay's endless sea greets them, glittered with stars, the moonlight, and the few lanterns that are being released from the sea to the sky. There is a field scattered with people and couples on a slope, and then the fence that gives a view to the sea, but Gladion and Moon stand right at the skirts of the fair, taking in the view with delighted sighs of bliss.

Moon's grip on his hand loosens a notch and then tightens again. He doubts she's even conscious she's doing it, but it feels affectionate and intimate nonetheless. His thumb is sweeping over her knuckles faintly, eyes glued to the stars and the sea.

"This place is probably the prettiest one I've ever been in." Gladion's eyes turn to her. She's looking at the sky, mesmerized at the few seagulls cooing by. Her irises catch the galaxies in the night like the universe is swimming within her. "And that's a lot, coming from a full-fledged awesome traveler like me."

Gladion wants to call her out for her arrogance but he knows it's all play pretend, and even if it wasn't, it's not like she's wrong. "We talked somewhere close to here, didn't we?"

"That was _ages_ ago. Arceus, time flies." Her eyes lower from the celestial abode to the skyline, looking for something in the night. The glittering moonlight on the sea makes things a bit easier to spot, but it takes her a few seconds to find what she's looking for. "The Birdsong Café is down there. We're kinda far away from civilization."

Gladion is painfully aware that he couldn't give less of a fuck about where other people were. Having her tied to his side by the hand is the most alluring yet alienating experience he's ever gone through. The few people walking by barely make a dent on his attention compared to his meticulous task of committing her touch to memory, of memorizing each squeeze of her fingers around his and the way she gasps sometimes when he squeezes back; Gladion pretends not to hear her, but he catches each of her reactions and slips them into the delicate pocket of his heart.

"You know, I've always had this question," Moon hesitates with her next words. "What does the Emperor of this Dominion look like? What even is his name? Is he maybe a _vampire_?"

"I don't think anyone has ever heard of him. He's always been a little of a mystery in the Kandrus Empire. At least Lusamine used to interact with her subordinates and own people, but I have never seen the guy." Moon nods. "I always thought you saw him when you got kidnapped."

"Had I seen that guy at the time and I would've _murdered_ him," she declares, frostbite coating her words for one second. The coldness melts through a sigh past her lips. "My issues with authority might have gotten better, but that guy had it coming."

They fall into a comfortable silence after that, because neither has anything to add and, in all honesty, being close like this is enough. Gladion has never been somebody to crave intimacy and touching this way, but a primal part of him doesn't want to let her go; it's a more delicate and admittedly much more timid side of him, but whenever her fingers wiggle and shift under his, touching every patch of his skin, something within him dies but in a very _good_ way.

Gladion's eyes turn to her, content as ever like a cat who has just been fed. A silly smile is pulling at her lips, and he catches the brushing of her thumb over his fingers, feathery and heavenly. He thinks he might not have seen something as breathtaking as her, stripped of her sarcasm and her bites and simply being there, with him.

Moon has always been with him during this slow dance of adventures and bickering, through the pain and even through death, in one way or another. He's always been convinced she will never stop annoying him, pissing him off; she will never leave him alone. And he doesn't mind that. _At all._

He's convinced he wouldn't have it any other way because Moon is just as important for him as the world under his feet.

"You know," Moon blinks, shifting her eyes to him. His hand has tightened around hers, "when I got that letter and Lillie asked me if I wanted to be the Emperor in the future, I was scared shitless. When I left Ludwig Town and took a leap of faith into _nowhere_ , I never expected to get all I have gotten. I got my family back, I got my sister back, I made great friends," he gives her hand a quiet squeeze, "and now I have a whole _Empire_ that might depend on me in the future."

Moon breathes a short laugh. "Who would've thought it, eh? We've all made it far."

"We certainly have." A breathless, senseless laugh rocks his body up and down. Her eyes are fixed on him through each of his tremors. "I didn't think I was made to be an Emperor, anyway. I like to think I'm a pretty good swordsman–"

"You definitely _are_."

Another chuckle. "– but being a leader is a completely different story. It's not only about being a good fighter, but also trusting your people. And having something you want to protect." That something drips with meaning, enhanced by the soft motions of his thumb over her knuckles. "More dangers might come in the future, and I don't want to be tied down for all my life. I… don't think I'm ready to be an Emperor yet, but I realized a little while ago that I would like to get there someday." His expression, serene and collected, breaks into a boyish smile. "I'm excited about it, even. I don't think I've felt this optimistic in ages."

After a breath of silence and a gentle, nearly _enamoured_ sigh, Moon speaks up.

"I'm so proud of you."

That was not exactly the response he had been expecting. "What for?"

"Are you kidding? Look at you." A giggle shakes her shoulders. "When we first met, you could barely hold a conversation with me without being all closed up and grumpy, but now you're telling me _so_ much about your feelings I can barely believe it." Moon takes a careful half step closer to him, facing him fully. "If anyone told me you'd ever open up to me this much, I would've shrugged them off."

His brow sinks. "What are you talking about? I trust you with my life, Moon." And her eyes widen to be about three times their size; he grows ten times meeker, but no less encouraged to speak his mind. "I… I want to protect you. Most of what I have now is thanks to you being infuriatingly helpful. So when I say I want to protect–"

Moon brings a pair of fingers against his lips. Her cheeks are filled by a genuine smile, one of those rare smiles that makes his heart dance and his stomach clench. "I wanna protect you too. You've also been a pain in the ass to deal with, but it's become… _bearable_. And kinda neat, having you around."

As much as he despises how much she plays with wording to make things not too saccharine, his head still swims in euphoria just by how much pride and that soft mushy-mushy feeling she's packed into a single sentence.

Her eyes are staring into his intently, a little lidded in residual gentleness. Alarmingly, she tiptoes to his height and presses a single digit to his brow. "And I might be super proud of you, but you still gotta work on the frowning issue. I would love to see you smile more often."

In retaliation, he brings his free hand to her cheek and pulls at it very carefully; strong enough to make a point, but still very delicately. The red on her lips spreads with her smile and _well he brought this to himself_. "You're the one who smiles too often."

"Is it bad?"

"Not at all." He lets go, but his hand lingers over her cheek for a little longer. "I think you have a very pretty smile. I like seeing you smile every day."

Carried away by an unknown force, by the fluttering butterflies in his stomach and the warmth that she radiates, the intoxicating feeling of her presence and the way her eyes are wide in surprise, his digits deftly trap a strand of hair and he tucks it behind her ear, caressing the skin he finds with foreign care and dedication.

The little noise she lets out – half a squeal, half an embarrassed grunt – is complemented with a very nice and appealing intense blush, spreading to the skin he had just touched on her ear.

Moon buries her face in her free hand, clearly ashamed, and he _snickers_. His hand drops from her face to his pocket. "Are you seriously blushing over this, of all things? Where did the shameless assassin go, huh?"

She looks up from her hiding spot with a radioactive red splashed on her cheeks, teeth gritted. "You– You're just doing this to play games with me. I'm supposed to be the cool collected one, _goddammit_." Her blush begins to subdue, little by little, with puffs and huffs from her, indignant and trying to shrug it off but her pursed lips and twinkling eyes can't lie. "You can't just go ahead and try to weaken your rival like this."

The following words escape him before he can stop them; his voice drops an octave lower.

"Do you think we're still rivals?"

"What do you– _oh_!" Her attention is abruptly turned from her to flashes of light in the sky, along with the cracking of fire and the explosions above them. "Look! The fireworks just began!"

Explosions of red, blue, and green ripple in the sky with resonant triumph, illuminating the sky with their blaze as they occupy the glory all stars used to possess. They light up the sea and tint them in watercolors and rainbows, much to the delight of the couples lying down at the stop at their feet and the others perched on the railing before the sea. Moon and him, however, stand back, letting their minds be washed away by the lovely ricochet of the colors and the dazzling chaos, as though it will stave off this very thin, fine thread of intimacy and softness he just _can't let go of_.

Gladion doesn't want to let go of her; of her smiles, of her caring whispers, of her touch, her hand clasped around his like it had been meant to be. Her affection haunts him like the missing piece of a puzzle he never knew he had been trying to put together for a long time, now.

He brushes his fingers against hers, palms grazing each other before he laces their fingers together gently, curling his digits between hers protectively, serenading himself with the feeling of her own corresponding the gesture with equal measures of softness and intimacy. Gladion sucks in a quiet breath, taking in the roughness of her palms but the tenderness of her fingertips, the caring lull of her breathing as she exists, remains and stays glued to his side.

He takes a daring glance towards her. The colors splash on her face like stars and planets colliding, the vastness of her eyes being filled with rainbows and a sweet wash of comfort and bliss. Her cheeks are soft pink and full with a smile, as well as an emotion he can never put a name to; but the sight is making his throat dry, and Gladion thanks the blasting fireworks for covering the erratic pace of his heartbeat.

His eyes unavoidably navigate downwards, through the thin scars on her nose and to the velvety red on her lips, sultry and intoxicatingly dangerous. Gladion has always tried to put a name to this _feeling_ , this physical fixation he has with Moon and the color of red, the way he wants to caress it, to feel it under his fingertips, to hear her sigh his name, and for him to sigh hers, and hear her say that she feels the same way he does, even if he doesn't know himself what this is, this frenetic heartbeat, this sweet, sweet landing–

Gladion stumbles with an earth-shattering realization, studying her as she watches the fireworks explode in the sky. The world goes very still and silent for a short second, like he's underwater but he can breathe just fine.

Sensing his gaze on her, Moon turns to him with an honest smile.

"Thank you," she whispers, a little closer, "for being here. And for trusting me the same way I trust you, too."

He wonders what it would be like to feel her lips, so red and so alluring, right under his.

And like the curious man he is, Gladion leans in a little, merely an inch, and he swears she leans in too, pulled by gravity, pulled by–

"Hey! Thank goodness I finally found you!"

Moon and Gladion shriek apart like struck by lightning, albeit their very odd behavior is quickly covered by further drumming of the fireworks and a lucky flash of light that momentarily distracts Ilima from the pair. Gladion dedicates her a questioning gaze, asking himself and _her_ if this had been a dream, maybe just light-headedness from the crowd filling in the fields, but the telling remnants of a blush on her skin tell much more than words ever would.

Moon sighs loudly, then musters a grin the size of the ocean. "There you are! Did you get lost or something? You were gone for a long time!"

"I apologize dearly about that– I was taking care of my, um, _part_ of our agreement. When I claimed to never break a promise or a deal, I meant it with all my heart." If Moon knows what he's talking about, she says nothing about it. Ilima gestures at the sky. "I did my best, though I suppose my dear and _new_ technician friend will fix me what I asked of him."

"Your part of the– _oh_! Of _course_!" Moon claps her hands giddily, then turns to Gladion, who is already about to sulk his way into hell because _Ilima had to butt in right now and he's too bothered about it_. "I forgot to mention that we have a little partner in crime with us!"

"Partner in crime? Him?" Arching an eyebrow, he looks at Ilima in disbelief. "How can _he_ be defined by anything with the word _crime_ in it?"

Moon, fully back into her chipper and mischievous attitude, snickers and purses her lips. "Remember that time I fought with this guy when we were in Dawn Square Market?"

"Vividly."

Her grin widens a fraction. "Before beating him to a pulp, I made him promise he'd make me a favor if I won, and because I did, I asked him to help us out with this 'Lillie and Hau are smitten for each other but they won't admit it' mission of ours."

Gladion's eyes narrow in disbelief. "You got him roped into this, too?"

Ilima laughs pleasantly. "Believe it or not, Gladion, I tend to root for my friends' success."

And the blond rolls his eyes viciously. "Oh, _do you now_."

A flash of knowing and smugness crosses Ilima's features. Gladion nearly misses it. "I do, truly. I have been pretty dedicated tonight, considering my help in other instances has been rather lacking." Moon nods, though she's jogging from one side to the other, so it's clear she's expecting a little more than that. The Captain points to the field at their feet. "Last time I saw Lady Lillie and Hau, they were walking down to the fields. I believe my friend is about to put my favor into show soon."

"What favor, though?" That's a very good question for her to ask. "Did you ask him to give them flowers? I've read that in Lillie's favorite novels and it _never_ works."

"Not at all." Ilima takes a pair of binoculars from under his shirt, hanging from his neck. "My friend is about to set up a rather romantic show of fireworks, and hopefully, Lady Lillie and Hau will–"

Moon, in her expertise and ability, manages to snatch the binoculars from Ilima without breaking his neck, but she does break the thread in the process. She crouches to her feet, scanning the field while Gladion looks at her, completely at a loss of words.

Ilima nudges him from his side. He has a wide, wolfish smirk on his lips. "I assume you were having fun with Moon earlier, too, correct?"

His whisper drips with sass and teasing. Gladion doesn't particularly appreciate it. "I got no idea what you're talking about."

"Sure thing," Ilima laughs, and he manages to do that quietly and _politely_ , even if his eyes are those of a snake that is having mercy on its prey. "But I don't recall ever seeing Moon blush like that before. I would say that whatever you did is a total–"

" _Guys_!"

Moon springs back into position to her feet so quickly both men nearly are pushed back. Bouncing where she stands, she shoves the binoculars into Ilima's chest and backhands Glaidon's arm incessantly. Sensing her enthusiasm, he grabs her shoulder to keep her still and, for the sake of this 'operation', silent. "What's up?"

"Gladion, Gladion, _Gladion she's reading the letter!_ " His green eyes widen at this declaration, and Moon makes him the favor of pointing where the couple is to prove her words. "They're there! Right by the couple with the weird yellow caps!"

Right where her enthusiasm-shaking finger is indicating, a young not-yet-couple stands under the moonlight. His sight is poor under the veil of the night and the scant moonlight framing them both, but he can tell the thin shape of a paper being held by a girl, who wears a dress and her hair is on a bun– _yeah, that's definitely Lillie_.

Ilima nods vigorously, smiling. "Yep. It seems like our friend Hau has finally handed a love letter to her." If he finds _that_ part to be of worth, then Moon hasn't bothered telling him about the lore behind the letter itself; honestly, Gladion is happy about that. "I wonder how she will react."

The trio observes them for a couple of minutes. Lillie has long finished reading the letter and stares at Hau as he speaks, but none of it can be made out as he isn't facing them and they can't hear a single thing– until they hear distinct squealing from Lillie herself, throwing her arms around Hau's neck and–

" _Oops_ ," winces Moon. "Did Lils just tackle Hau to the ground?"

"Lady Lillie is stronger than one might bargain for," explains Ilima with a sigh. "She once beat me at an arm-wrestling match. That was certainly humiliating, considering I had just begun working as her bodyguard."

Gladion and Moon turn to him for one, single second. " _Unsurprising_."

In the foreground, Lillie and Hau haven't picked each other from the ground. They are talking animatedly to each other, constant moving coming from them though they're not moving from one place to another; Gladion can hear the thin veil of her voice if he focuses, and then a deeper tone littered with laughter, and then they lean close and–

Moon's legs quiver and Gladion quickly supports her with one of his arms. " _Gladion_. Gladion– they're _kissing_."

The older brother gulps. "I can tell."

"My, they are certainly eager." Ilima is, weirdly enough, still looking through the binoculars. He lowers them to address Moon and Gladion directly, focusing on them again. "I suppose this means that they must be together now, right?"

The word _together_ is enough to send her through the roof and the stars, vibrating with happiness and smiling so wide and big that it could perfectly shatter her face. If there's anything to take away from her reaction, it's that Gladion finds himself to be smiling widely as well, looking at them while not seeing _anything_ , either, but he imagines that they're happy, that they're finally together and _Arceus_ , he's so happy that his sister finally got the ending she deserves.

"I can't believe they're a thing now. My little Lils has finally gotten herself a boyfriend, I can't believe _Hau_ is her boyfriend. Our Hau. The malasada boy." Moon sighs endearingly, biting her lip. She shifts her gaze to Gladion. "Do you think they'll let us name the baby if they ever have one?"

In the sky, fireworks of green and orange colors burst into life, illuminating the scene and her eyes once more.

"I don't know," he chuckles. "But I really hope so."

* * *

When they make it back to the hotel close to the Birdsong Café, they make it with tumbles and giggles and Gladion's constant shushing to prevent them from waking up anybody in nearby rooms. Hau and Lillie are constantly trying to push his buttons, very likely riding that sweet adrenaline ride after what had been, per their words, 'a nice confession with a little bit of drama involved'.

Moon had added the word 'realization' and 'fate' to Lillie's explanation, and the Empress, far from denying it, had giggled her life away and smothered her laughter into Hau's awaiting shoulder, who patted her head to soothe her as they walked down the corridors.

Everything is hauntingly quiet in the hallways. Ilima's bedroom is on the first floor, so he parted first with a simple wave of his hand, wishing them good night. The rest of the rooms are on the second floor, and as they all are ready to part ways, Moon catches sight of Hau leading Lillie to _his_ room by the hand.

"Hold on, mister," she calls, all in a quiet enough voice. "Where do you think you're taking our dear Lils, eh? Just because we met you first doesn't mean that you're off our scope."

"Dude, you sounded like such a _mom_ right now," he laughs nervously, along with Lillie who has let go of all her inhibitions and is completely molten all over Hau, arms wrapped around his arm and head on his shoulder. "We ain't gonna do anything, we just wanna have a, uh, proper talk, y'know."

Gladion scowls at the pair, hands on his hips. "If I hear anything weird, I swear I will hunt you down."

Moon throws him a doubtful glance. "We're talking about Hau. The worst thing he would do is talk of malasadas instead of her."

"That's not– oh, _great_." The hallway is empty now, sans Moon and Gladion; he sighs, evidently tired. "And now they're gone. I didn't even wish them a good night."

A shaky chuckle escapes her. "How gentlemanly of you."

After that, she throws her arms up and stretches them with a pleased wince. Gladion hears several cracks. It's something she does whenever she's restless or strained, because there's never an in-between with her and, right now, with the hallway lights turned off and their bodies cast into nearly absolute darkness, he can't read her as well as he usually does. A veil of moonlight reaches her shoulder and his front, but it's still scarce.

Moon sighs, content. "It was a great night, though." Her arms sink to her sides, flinging back and forth as she speaks. "I had a great time. I kinda wanna go back, not gonna lie."

"It's three in the morning, Moon," he comments, shaking his head.

She bends her arms behind her, grinning. The gesture beams under the moonlight. "Hours are just numbers, Gladion. Sadly for the festival, I'm tired, so maybe another day."

She trails off into silence, and he stares, stares and _stares_ at her like she's the biggest mystery of the world. It has indeed been an eventful night, so much so that he can still hear the ruckus of the fair in the basement of his head, a distant echo. If he focuses enough, he can hear her laughter, her breathing, and feel her touch under his fingertips.

Gladion swallows a lump. "It was a rather good night, yeah. It's hard to know that something we have been looking forward to for this long is over already."

Moon smirks, but it's a little kinder than mean. "Why? Would you have wanted it to go on for longer?"

The question lingers in the air for a little more than necessary, but it's enough for him to put his tired self together and come to the conclusion that _of course he wants it to_.

But he answers her in the best way he knows. "Would you?"

Freckles of moonlight catch with the shape of her eyelashes as she blinks rapidly, not quite sure how to answer that; being honest, he wouldn't know either. He's alluding to something maybe she doesn't want to hear about. Gladion finds it just as hard to muster the words to say that he doesn't want it to be over, either, because this night had been all sorts of revealing and wonderful, banter and bickering and fondness and gentleness included.

He catches sight of her tongue darting out to wet her lips. Her hands hover in mid-air, but her eyes are pulled somewhere else. "I– _ugh_. You're just hellbent on making me blush all night, are you?"

"Considering how consistent you have been about embarrassing me, too, it's only fair I get my revenge."

Moon twists her lips in displeasure. She takes a little step closer that makes the air around him a tad hotter. "You're a dumbass." Slowly, her head falls to his shoulder, cheek pressed on his thick jacket. "Stupid edgelord."

Like clockwork, his arms cage her against him, and his nose rubs the crown of her head tenderly. She smells like cotton candy, powder, and a little bit of rain; it makes him a little dizzy, exhilarated. Despite the change of air she brings with her, her frame is oddly cold under his palms. "You don't take kindly to losing, do you?"

"Not if it's _you_ I'm competing against." He feels her melt into the embrace, hands coming up to grab the fabric of his jacket covering his back. Her eyes daringly peek from his chest, and she snickers loud enough for him to hear. "Did my comment make someone bashful?"

Gladion tears his gaze off from her. "Arceus, you were much better when you were flustered."

"I wasn't flustered. It's cold outside."

The chuckle he gives her is enough of an answer, and he counts the seconds they are quiet in his head. Moon's presence in his arms is about ten times more powerful than usual, and where she would bring him peace and _something_ , that something is now unabashed affection that he knows he will _never_ show to her in public; Hau and Lillie would _never_ let him live it down, and moments like these are those he's come to appreciate with the passing of weeks during this trip.

Her weight feels nice in his arms. She fits perfectly against him. He doesn't want her to go just yet. All he needs is another minute, and maybe a few seconds after that. "Is it weird that I don't want to let you go?"

"A little, but I guess it's fine. I don't wanna let go either."

He loses track of his count when she sighs in utter, unaltered bliss, and peels herself off his body very carefully. It looks like she's memorizing his warmth and his touch as much as he is.

It's a little too late in the night. Being together after a night that has _literally_ turned everything upside down is _not_ a good idea.

But she looks like something is in her head, eyes on the wall behind him; eyes on his door.

"I… don't want the night to be over, either." Moon bites her lip. She appears to be conflicted. "It's been a lot of fun."

His lungs gather air, rushing to counter her point. "You could always–"

The smile she gives him is absolutely golden. " _Stay_?" She chuckles softly at the surprise in his expression. "I... was just gonna ask that, actually."

As much as his relief is _astronomical_ and _Arceus he's being too delicate tonight_ , Gladion's eyebrows rise. "Why, though?"

"I… I might have lost the key to my door." A low groan reverberates from his throat, and she snorts. "I thought about sleeping on the roof or maybe outside, but– this… is gonna sound sappy as hell, but whenever I sleep close to you, I don't have any nightmares. Last time we slept side by side in that tent, I slept well. I hadn't slept that nicely in ages, maybe." Her eyes fall lidded, as though she's looking for the right words to say; like she has too much to say in a few words. "I feel a little safer."

Gladion waits for the harsh landing, for her to say it was a joke and for her to undermine her own words. All he's met with is a stubborn huff and a dim blush on her cheeks, which he still has not gotten used to but it's beautiful all the same.

Her words resonate with him. It's not like he's been keeping track of it, but he recalls waking up more rested than ever whenever they slept close to another– maybe that time where they slept on the haystacks doesn't necessarily count as sleeping as much as it counted for a nightly nap, but her admitting to these coincidences first is a novelty.

Gladion wants to think she's looking at this from an objective standpoint.

But her eyes can't lie – gray, soft, incandescent, longing – and tonight hasn't been a night about being objective either. He knows his hands – trembling, missing her touch – are aching for her.

And when he notices that she's being honest, he can't help but stutter a small gasp. His cheeks sting with crimson, and he finds himself looking away first. "I- I never thought I would hear you of _all people_ say that."

Moon folds her arms and cranes her head to the window beside them. "If you blush I'm gonna end up blushing too, _Arceus_ –I'm just being logical here." Neither of them is being logical, but that's a lie they can let slide. "I don't think I'll get a blink of sleep after all we've done tonight. I'm restless. But I think I might not be restless if I sleep with you– _that sounded so wrong_."

 _Oh, Arceus_ , it did, but his heart squeezed nonetheless. Moon has always been his biggest _everything_ ; biggest rival, biggest headache, biggest stomach ache, biggest heartache, but also biggest heartthrob, it seems. Moon stands before him like she's the enemy when she's anything but, assaulting his heart with stubborn and fidgety honesty that is equal parts charming and bad for his stomach. It's making so many twists and lurches Gladion barely knows what it feels to _not_ feel anymore.

Gladion, knowing he's never been one to back off from his enemy, takes in a deep breath. "We're a little too tired tonight. It's been a long day. I understand why you're restless– it's like the festival is still going on in your head. I'm a little restless myself."

Moon catches the bait immediately and hangs onto it. "Exactly," she nods, lips pursed. "And it's not like we're gonna do anything weird. We're just looking out for our sleep. We're being healthy individuals. Nothing wrong about that. And I lost my keys, so it's not like I'm gonna sleep outside, right?"

Knowing her, she would; but that's a truth they are very deliberately going to overlook this time only.

He reaches out carefully, hesitating all the way like he's pushing against the tides of their very unusual friendship, and holds her hand in his own delicately. "Glad we got that out of the way."

Gladion fishes his key from his pocket and opens the door. Not waiting for him to pull her along, Moon walks into the room behind him, and she doesn't let go of his hand until they have removed their shoes and their backpacks and their bodies hit the supple mattress and fluffy duvets. He's dimly aware that neither of them will change into pajamas of any kind, so he takes the liberty of sneaking into the bed and patting the spot behind him to beckon her closer.

Moon crawls under the duvets as well, and moments later, Gladion sees a ball of disheveled hair pop up right by him along with a groan of what he deems to be of much-needed comfort. Gladion can barely see anything in the dark, but he can tell she's facing him by how some strands of hair float upwards with her calm breathing. For a second, it looks like she's fast asleep.

When he pushes those rebellious strands out of her face, he finds her to be staring right back at him with shrinking eyes, ready to sleep as soon as they are set. His touch is merely a ghost over her face. "You have hair all over your face."

"Says the idiot with bangs that look like fries," she bites in, more of a sigh than a snarky retort. In a devastatingly useless effort to save his pride, he grabs hold of his fringe and looks at it for a pair of seconds, and then back at her, whose eyes are already closing.

"Maybe when we get to Zeffarei," hesitation, doubt, "you could help me trim my fringe just a little."

A little gasp escapes her, and her body stiffens just a little, enough for him to know she's caught his drift, the meaning behind his words. Pressing her cheek into his pillow, she breathes a chuckle. "Why? Scared Lillie might chop it off entirely?"

Gladion hums a nod in response, too bone-molten and comfortable to say anything else, and peers at her from his bangs. Her shape is only a blob of duvets and a head under the moonlight. He's sure he's never shared this much space with her before, but he's also sure they are a little too far away. She's at arm's reach, but sharing a bed like this, it suddenly doesn't feel right for her to _not_ be closer.

But does she feel the same way? Is she just after the logical experience of better sleep? Would she want to go the extra mile this once and maybe, just maybe–

Moon might be thinking just the same thing, chuckling under her breath. "You can come a little closer, you know. I'm not gonna bite you tonight." A little laugh. "Tomorrow's another story."

She mumbles the last part and then stays quiet. He takes no time in sliding to the side and wiggling his arm under her, and another over her waist to pull her to his chest, where she falls comfortably with a little hum of bliss. Her hands bunch his shirt while the hand under her head nestles into her dark hair, relishing in the cool caress of her tresses under his chin and hand. His deft fingers absent-mindedly undo the little knots on her scalp.

"It's so weird," she mumbles into his chest. "When we're with the others, I want us to have fun, explore places and sometimes beat the shit out of you. You're fun to fight with." Her lips move against the surface of his heart. He wonders if she can hear his heartbeat the way he's feeling it in his ears. "But when we're alone, I wanna hug you sometimes. Like this. You're so weird."

He smiles into her hair, so hard and so wide he can barely hold back a laugh, a chuckle of glee. "You must be losing your mind if you're being this honest with me, Moon."

"Mm, maybe, but that's fine. We can fight all this stuff out tomorrow," she says breathily, drowsily nuzzling his chest. "This fluffy shit is a little too much for me."

"Yeah, tomorrow," he says, hoarse, one foot in slumber. "We can spar tomorrow."

His eyes open for one last time, lidded. He feels something warm, ticklish, and pleasant flutter in his heart at the sight of her like this; it's Moon, bare-hearted and human, curled against him without walls to separate them anymore. It's like his heart is beating again for the first time.

And he's too tired to fight it anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> /grabs hammer
> 
> /bangs floor
> 
> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I'm sorry AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
> 
> We have finally committed the naughty sin of holding hands and not ONLY THAT BUT THEY HAVE HUGGED, CUDDLED, AND ALMOST KISSED.
> 
> COULD I HAVE GIVEN YOU THIS EARLIER? YES. WOULD IT BE THIS SATISFYING? NO. SHUT UP IM CRYINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG
> 
> GLADION HAS CAUGHT FEELINGS FOR MOON AND WE KNOW HOW SHE FEELS ON HER SIDE. IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME, BOYS. IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
> 
> I'm dancing in fluff. This chapter was a walk down the forest to write. I had been holding back from making these two since arc 2. I HAD URGES. LOOK AT MY FUCKING BABIES. THEY ALMOST KISSED. THEY LOVE EACH OTHER AND now it's up to me to decide how long I'll drag this for-- I mean there are only 7 chaps left so ;) who knows hehe
> 
> "Whenever they had indulged in sparring duels, anytime she fought with her uniform it'd always have a few cuts on the sleeves that she never bothered sewing back together. / Gladion had procured most of those cuts on her clothes. Not seeing them on her sleeves or neck is alarming and strangely irritating. He had been a little too proud of those." - Gladion, my guy, I
> 
> "Moon pouts; that's exactly when Gladion realizes that, out of all colors on Earth, her lips are painted with a glossy red. / He feels giddy, nervous, and a little bit, just a teensy bit warmer than usual. / He went through this with her stupid bathrobe, and now it's her lips; the fact that she bites her lip so often makes the whole ordeal about ten times worse." - HE'S SLIGHTLY HORNY OVER MOON IN RED AGAIN. OLIVIA THE DAY YOU DISCOVERED MOON IN RED YOU CAUSED THIS BUY GREAT PAIN
> 
> "I once tried to sleep with one of those, but it never worked, so I bought another, and it didn't work either. When I slept with like, five of them on me and absolutely nothing happened, I felt conned." - sigh
> 
> "Gladion's hand has unconsciously sneaked around hers again, clasping her fingers under his tenderly and gently. Her fingers mold under his as though it's magic, and he curls her hand into his protection like he misses the warmth and cherishes her presence. Gladion treasures the way her eyes widen, how her lips part in askance, and how she can't look any barer and close under the lights of the fair." - mY DUDE WHERE DID THAT HEART COME FROM YOU'RE ALL HEART EYES FOR HER MY DUDEMYDUDEMYDUDE
> 
> Moon walking around a fair with plushies, hand in hand, throwing punches at each other: the content we have deserved all along
> 
> "What are you talking about? I trust you with my life, Moon." And her eyes widen to be about three times their size; he grows ten times meeker, but no less encouraged to speak his mind. "I… I want to protect you. Most of what I have now is thanks to you being infuriatingly helpful." - /clutches heart and collapses
> 
> I'm not gonna comment on him cupping her cheek and pulling her hair behind her ear. I won't. If I do I'll fucking DIE so we're gonna skip to um /turns pages EVERYTHING IS FLUFFY WHERE DO I STOP WITHOUT COMBUSTING
> 
> we're not gonna stop anywhere
> 
> I'm just gonna say thAT THEY CUDDLED AND GLADION ADMITTED TO HAVING FEELINGS SO I WONDER IF THE REST OF THIS ARC IS GONNA BE ALL ABOUT GLADION AND MOON WALTZING AROUND THEIR FEELINGS AND GETTING INTO SOME ACTUAL ROMANTIC LONA
> 
> next chapter we're going dungeon exploring + maybe some itty bitty lona pining as par for the course w this arc wwwww


	14. Constellations in the Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group travels to the Sandlands in search of a cave to explore. Things don't go as expected, but thankfully, that's not new.

Gladion has stepped into his day with the arduous task in mind of forgetting about absolutely everything that had happened the night prior.

In his head, it makes absolute sense; most of what he remembers about that night had been induced by exhaustion, he knows; but when he woke up in his bed with her in his arms, his first instinct had been to wrap her up in more blankets and stay there for eternity. Now, he doesn't know if he had woken up just as exhausted as the night prior and had wanted to indulge himself, but after having a hearty breakfast and a good glass of juice, he had decided that the best thing would be to forget about it.

Something in his heart doesn't feel right. He feels uncomfortable because he feels _comfortable_ and this is all too new for him. Having soft feelings for his rival is _not_ what he should be doing because that's _not_ how they work. They are torn, ragged edges, bickering, and some honesty here and there; last night had been a completely different experience, something new and out of this world.

And he had enjoyed it immensely.

Maybe a little too much.

Maybe he wants to do it again _but telling her that would be too embarrassing and it's Moon, she had just been tired because Moon doesn't do romance, she doesn't feel butterflies in her stomach, she doesn't know what she does to him and she's too infuriating_.

And he can't stop thinking about her, which makes him grumpy and upset. He's never had this sort of fixation for anybody _ever_ in his life, and while he's considering the possibility that these feelings have been lying within him for a long time, he outright _refuses_ to let himself know that. Moon has always been important to him, and he knows that's never going to change, but this is something different and a little scary.

It's Moon. Moon and romance just don't work. Whatever had happened yesterday had been them being healthy and comfortable with each other. A natural development of their friendship. Hau and Lillie have held each other's hands before while being friends.

And Hau had had a crush on her at the time.

Well, fuck.

He will forget about this and move on with their lives as if the cuddling, the soft whispers, and the butterflies in his chest never happened because that's what's safe and what they do best.

But then Moon slams her hand on the table of the cafeteria, right on top of a map of the region. The mugs of coffee, tea, and milk dance. "We got a new mission on our hands!"

"Oh, goodness. I had forgotten how excited she gets about these things," says Lillie between giggles, though the sound is a stutter of fear. Her friends' and boyfriend's faces don't make things any better. "She will get us in trouble, won't she?"

"We're not gonna get in trouble, this is just a harmless little quest! An appetizer, if you will– and if you won't, too!" Moon puts her hands on her hips, beaming at everyone. "I heard there's this very big monster swimming under the Sandlands, like those worms that the Pongii say that move the world. Maybe a little smaller, I hope. If not, that's gonna be a problem."

"Wait, worms?" asks Ilima, intrigued. "I always thought the main idea was that it was a tortoise moving us from place to place in space."

"Ideas can vary from region to region," explains Gladion, leaning back on his chair. "Smaller tribes have their local fantasies. The Pongii saying it's worms moving it all around makes sense, I guess. I've heard a fair share of even more stupid ideas myself."

"Listen," Moon grabs a chair from a close table behind her and slams herself down on it, "the Pongii told me there are these giant worms hidden deep in the Sandlands, and that they're constantly on the move looking for small prey to snack on. They must be enormous, and I wanna see them. I bet they'll be super friendly if we ask for an interview with them."

Gladion shakes his head. "That's a ridiculous idea. No monster will enjoy being woken from their nap simply because you got a whim."

"That's because nobody has been nice to them! You gotta be gentle but convincing, y'know? That's just how everything works." Her eyes travel from him to the wrinkled map on the table. She circles a vague area to the south of the Sandlands. "There is this very small hideout for the worms' children, so they can lead us to them. The Pongii told me they're like 'little children of Arceus', as if I'm supposed to understand that."

Hau tilts his head in thought. "Legends say Arceus has the shape of a very big horse, so they might be lil' ponies."

"No, I think I know what Moon might be talking about," says Lillie, peering over the map with big, wondrous eyes. "Before time ever existed, little star-shaped meteorites took their place in the sky and formed the constellations and stars we know, but with time, they created a husk around them and fell to our planet. Astrologists and books call it 'the Minior'. They roam around our Realm seeking a home before their husks can fall off their bodies and they can go back to the sky."

"And those are the guys the Pongii referred to as 'the kids of Arceus'?" asks Moon, brows disappearing under her fringe.

"I think so. I would even dare say that the star shower we watched a few weeks ago could correspond to a set of them falling to our planet."

Moon's weight slumps over the table. Ilima is quick to pull a mug out of her head's way before she headbutts it to shatters. "Man, I would've loved to watch one of those guys fall on us. That would've been great."

Hau, sitting right beside her, pats her back in apology. Gladion drinks from his coffee. "You can get your head blown off by an asteroid next time there's a star shower."

Moon turns her head to him with a vicious narrow of her eyes. It's good to know they can still get on each other's nerves despite everything that has happened, which he is _not_ going to think about, nor the way her hair is a little disheveled and _he wants to brush it off her eyes just a little–_

"It truly is extraordinary that such a species exists," comments Ilima. He adds a small puff of milk to his coffee. "Where did you read about all these things, Lady Lillie?"

She flashes him an awkward smile. "Mother keeps a rather… big collection of books on these topics. I spent my childhood reading about them. It's a vastly interesting topic, truly." Lillie trails off into a hum of thought. "As far as I know, though, the Minior can only be called forth with a very rare flute. It is rumored to be crafted from an asteroid's core and the magma of a young volcano–"

Moon springs her body upright and rummages through her backpack. She slams an object on the table– she's in an oddly fidgety mood today. It sounds hollow and glossy, almost china-like.

The rest peer over the table. Lillie blinks, unamused. "Yep. That's the Sun Flute."

Hau blinks at an exaggeratedly slow pace. Moon stares at him like she's showing them a piece of wood, common and not at all extraordinary. " _Dude_. This is one of those ancient-as-hell relics! Not even the monks in the Solaris Monastery have ever seen this! It's a legendary item!"

And Gladion, pragmatic as ever, makes the clever question. "Thus, I think it's worth asking _how the fuck_ you got your hands on something like this."

Moon directs a smirk towards him. "Why? Jealous of my treasure-hunting skills, _Gladion_?"

The way she purrs his name does very ugly things to him. "Not at all. But we might have to watch out for more guards if you have killed one or two."

"Nah, I didn't. I found this while I was in Bakiria a few months back." She passes the flute to Lillie, who holds it in her hands much more delicately than Moon did. "I was looking around a cave and found this guy all dusty and dirty in a corner. I liked the colors, so I took it with me, and when I came from Bakiria I stumbled with this very, very old tome from a corner of the library in the palace–"

"A black book? With a very big, ominous purple eye on the cover?" asks Lillie, wincing.

"That one!"

Lillie puts her elbows on the table and proceeds to have an internal crisis right in front of her friends, shaking her head. "Arceus, she read _Chaos in the Underworld_. She read the book. Out of all the ones I recommended to her."

"It had a pretty cool name. When I asked Gladbag about it, he said it was a pretty interesting book, so–"

Gladion blamelessly sips from his coffee again. Lillie throws him an incriminatory look. " _Big brother_! You know what Wicke told us about those books with the black covers!"

"Oh, do you mean the curse? In all fairness, he did tell me about that." Gladion nods at Moon's words. "I just wanted to read the book. Whatever measly curse existed in that book didn't even do a thing on me."

Hau leans to a side, whispering something to Ilima. "You guys keep _cursed books_ in the Aedus palace?"

Ilima shrugs.

"Of course, and that's why the ceiling of your room in the academy gave in with you sleeping _right_ underneath, I guess?" asks Gladion, recalling very vividly the image of a debris-covered Moon knocking on his room at the palace for help. He also recalls nearly throwing her out the window because she had knocked at five in the morning and his patience runs thin quick at such ungodly hours.

"I didn't even wake up! It's not like I got hurt or anything, so that does _not_ count– but I digress." Moon leans back on her seat, drumming her fingers on the table. "Where was I? Oh, yeah– so I looked it up and this flute can summon the Minior if we play it. I thought it was just a plain flute with a very fancy design."

Lillie passes the flute over to Ilima, who points at the sun-shaped attachment on the flute. "Why, I would say this Sun right here looks very peculiar."

"I kinda thought the same. It kept catching with the fabric of my backpack, it was kinda annoying. It's super pretty, though, but maybe we could give this flute to the Minior so they don't have other annoying humans invading their houses." Moon shakes her head. "That's uncool."

"And by annoying humans you mean _yourself_ , right?"

Moon throws Gladion a wide smile that fills her cheeks, brows wagging in suggestion. "Why don't we go and find out? The cave is supposed to be in the south of some ruins I visited a while ago. It should be a little hard to miss."

Hau grins and encourages her decision; Ilima nods simply, Lillie gulps and Gladion takes the last sip of his lukewarm coffee. "Dude, we're gonna have so much fun! We haven't gone to one of these in _forever_!" His sparkling eyes meet Lillie's. "You're gonna love it. And we're not gonna let anything happen to you, I swear."

"Oh, I… doubt anything will happen to me. I can defend myself just fine." She hesitates nonetheless, grimacing. "I simply wasn't expecting my first experience to be one of such caliber; I never thought the words 'giant' and 'worm' could go in the same sentence until now."

"Don't worry," says Gladion, not a single touch of encouragement in his already tired deadpan. "She can do much worse than this."

* * *

Moon has many ways of out-doing herself, Gladion knows; she can walk on fire and maybe set the sea ablaze if she so desires. Gladion had expected her to lead them through a ravine full of crocodiles or a pit full of scorpions, anything that would make justice to the many tales she's told them in the past. She does lead them around a pair of quicksands and Hau nearly gets his leg bitten off by an adorable carnivore orange turtle, but Ilima and Moon fend it off while Gladion and Lillie treat his wounds.

"Dude, I can heal myself just fine. I thought its head was a rock!"

Moon squats to look at him in the eye. "I got my leg bitten by one of those, too. An ex traveling mate of mine did, as well, though he got it much worse than I did. The Trapinch was big and bit his entire leg."

Ilima blinks, jaw squared at the very visual example she has presented. "And what happened to that poor man?"

Moon looks at him for two seconds, then at the rest, and gets up to walk onwards in absolute nonchalant silence.

Whether she does this purposefully or not, he doesn't know, but the trip is safe, sound, and nearly pleasant. Other than the very persistent heat in these lands despite it being _freaking winter,_ the trip goes on without a hitch – Moon wisely tells them all to remove their jackets like she once had before going to Reikyuu, and Ilima doesn't believe her until _oh boy he believes her_.

Their trouble starts, confoundingly, when they reach the hypothetical cave where the hypothetical Minior live– he uses the word _hypothetical_ very liberally because he's still a little skeptical about this story. It's a cave in the middle of the desert, and it takes them a few hours and bottles of water to get there, but Moon's enthusiasm about the whole ordeal makes the trip entirely worth it.

The severe kick she delivers to the closed stone doors, though, isn't. The doors vibrate in fear. "Why is this thing closed? I thought it was a cave!"

"Maybe we could try to play the flute. Something might happen. I always assumed that was what the flute was for, other than summoning the actual Minior." Lillie turns from the cave to Moon. "You have the flute with you, don't you?"

Moon reaches behind her into the backpack and wrangles the flute into view. The instrument is fully white with some specs of orange scattered across the surface, like freckles. The sparkling sun embedded in the flute shines under the sunlight. The assassin stares at it for a couple of seconds, weighing it around her fingers as though it's a stone she has to throw to the river.

Then, she turns to face her friends. "Um, what am I supposed to play now?"

That's an actual good question. While Gladion had held hope that she knew the song and would delight them with the melody, it's not realistic to hope she knows that much. His eyes seek any sort of carving into the rocks that could give away the melody, but there's nothing to be seen at the entrance.

Hau turns to Lillie with an encouraging smile. Gladion realizes that they are holding hands. "You know a lot about these things. Wasn't there any mention of music in the books? Maybe a pentagram with a few dots?"

"None that I remember," she sighs. Her green eyes scan their surroundings carefully. "And even if I did, I don't think any of us know proper music theory to play the tune right."

"I actually know music theory."

The four warriors turn to Ilima, who regards them with a placid, easy smile of humbleness and honor. There's this crinkle in his eyes that screams thrill and excitement, a little flame to his usually plain yet calm and charming eyes. He holds himself upright, maybe a bit more so than he was just a second ago.

Moon folds her arms and lets out a long whistle. "So the Captain can also play music?"

" _Dude_ , that's neat."

The laugh he releases is airy and gracious. "My family is Kalosian, and they are incredibly talented when it comes to music. I haven't played anything in a long time, but I remember some bits from my music classes that could come in handy."

Gladion arches an eyebrow. "Unless you know the exact melody we're looking for, there's no hope for us."

Moon nudges his side with her elbow. Ilima nods at him, no less pleasant than before. "Maybe if we look around a little, we could find something of use. Perhaps we can knock and they will give us a clue."

His eyebrow knits. "That's a terrible idea–"

Another kick is served on the firmly shut doors, much stronger than the last, and Moon puts her ear on the door to try and hear any signs of activity from within. Her eyes widen a fraction and she grins– she heard something, and that's terrible news.

"Yo, good morning!"

Lillie looks at the sky. The sun will start setting soon. "It's actually about five o'clock, Moon."

She grunts something akin to ' _mannerisms are useless_ ' and cups her hands around her mouth. "Good evening! My name is Moon, and my friends and I wanna go in and have a little chat with you! We're not gonna hurt you!"

After a few seconds of silence, Gladion takes a few steps to stand right by her side. Everyone probably expects him to berate Moon for her manners, but he adopts the same posture as her to speak to the door. "We apologize on her behalf for almost breaking your door down. She's pretty impatient."

Moon hits his shoulder with her own. "Don't trust him! All we wanna do is talk to you! We don't know the melody to open your door, so a little hint might help!"

Nothing happens in the next ten seconds or so, and Gladion is tempted to turn heel and walk away; that is, before a small noise disturbs the air and carves a series of letters in front of Moon and Gladion for them to read.

_BY_

Moon reads the letters once, twice, and then, he hears her inhale a sharp take of air. "Don't the Minior have this super cute lullaby dedicated to them? We could play it!"

A few beats pass before Lillie gasps, bringing a hand to her mouth. "Of course! How could I have forgotten?" She turns to Ilima, who has his arms crossed as he inspects the letters. "What if we played that song with the flute?"

Gladion directs his eyes to Moon, wide and surprised. "How do you know about that?"

Much to his unsettlement, all she provides him with is a small bittersweet smile. "My parents used to sing it to me in my childhood. I barely remember it, but I know it's a very dreamy song."

"It indeed is," states Ilima as he approaches both of them. He slants a hand on Moon's shoulder, warm and gentle. "Your intellect never fails to surprise me, Moon. If I recall correctly, I believe Lusamine used to play it too. I recall most of the song."

"Mother?" blinks Lillie, eyes round. "She used to sing it to me, before sleep, yes, but I don't think I have ever heard her sing it to herself."

"I don't believe she ever noticed she was singing it. Whenever I had the opportunity to spend time with her, she would hum it to herself very absent-mindedly. She has a surprisingly sweet voice. Perhaps you inherited her musical prowess yourself, Lady Lillie." Lillie blushes thanks to this easy compliment. Ilima holds out his hand, and Moon hands him the flute. Gladion and her take a few steps back. "It might take me a few tries, but…"

Ilima obviously gets the melody right at the first try. Gladion has to wonder if he does this on purpose or not, but it's a little infuriating. Gladion himself has coursed music theory in his youth, but he barely remembers anything– Ilima must be very interested in music if his hand is still so deft with the flute. At least he had made Lillie smile, and that makes Ilima a little less dislikable.

In hindsight, he has never been that dislikeable. He's just very, very persistent on getting on Gladion's nerves when it comes to him and Moon, and Gladion is inexplicably altered by the issue.

The melody Ilima plays is hauntingly beautiful, dreamy, and soft-sounding. It doesn't fit the dry lands they stand in, but a few colors begin to sparkle on the previously dull rocks as the melody wafts in the air.

Maybe because it's meant to be their language or their anthem, the doors begin to drift apart with several shakes of the plates. This parting gate has been closed for a long time, dust coming off from the cracks, but they are soon greeted by a small cave of sparkling stones of a million colors, like diamonds and gems in full bloom.

The group walks in, observing their surroundings with marveled eyes. A dreamy light issues from every gem embedded into the ceiling and walls, as though they are underwater and this is only a dream. The ground is smooth but has a few dents. The corners of this cave are filled by rocks of many shapes, some of them like very fat stars.

And as the group pads closer and deeper into this small den, a shy star-shaped figure hovers into view, shining in a bright blue color. It spins around like a shooting star and lets out a greeting squeal.

Lillie covers her mouth. "That's _so cute_."

The Minior looks at them in interest, spiraling eyes drifting from member to member. The doors have long closed behind them, but the Minior makes no sign of noticing this. If anything, it hovers a little closer, bobbing up and down in mid-air. Its points are covered in quartz-like white.

Hau waves at it like the social prodigy he is. "Hello, little guy! You're super adorable!"

"I doubt these creatures have any notions of beauty," comments Ilima. "I never thought I would see a bare Minior without its husk, too."

The Minior, far from answering, releases a little squeak and dashes towards Gladion and Moon to the side, bobbing up and down in excitement. She holds up a palm, grinning, and Gladion does the same but with far less gusto.

"Hiya! You're so small!" Moon reaches a daring finger and pokes the creature on the cheek– or what Gladion assumes to be its cheek. Confused, the Minior lets out a little yelp. "Did that hurt? You feel like glass!"

"I believe the core of the Minior is crystallized because of the cold temperatures in space," theorizes Lillie, walking over between Moon and Gladion. The little creature lets out something akin to a giggle, and Hau and Ilima walk to stand behind Gladion and Moon respectively. "I doubt it will harm us."

Moon holds a palm up again, beckoning the creature to come closer, which it does; the Minior floats to her outstretched hand, and looks at it for a moment. Then, it lounges and shrills in excitement as it snuggles her warm palm.

She isn't pleased by this, somehow. She waves her palm back and forth and hisses. "Arceus, its skin _zapped_ me!"

The Minior squeals in embarrassment. The blonde giggles. "I think it got a little too enthusiastic."

"Man, it's super shiny, too," sighs Hau, mouth parted in disbelief. "Could we take one of these with us?"

"They are fallen stars from space, Hau. We can't take stars home with us," Gladion answers, but with a chuckle of good nature. Charcoal eyes are on him, curious and smiling. "And saying _one of these_ is a little misleading; there are only one of these guys around here."

Moon turns to the Minior once more, leaning close so her nose is just a touch away. "Hey, where are your friends? I guess you got lots of friends we can meet, right? We're not gonna hurt any of you, promise!"

The Minior spins once, the little smile on its face growing just an inch; it flashes backward and brutally sinks to the floor, drilling the surface with its pointy end so hard the cave begins to shake violently.

Ilima, sunken to the floor to support himself, grunts. "Why is the cave shaking so much!?"

Gladion takes a little tumble and nearly falls, but Moon catches him. "I think it might be trying to wake up its friends!"

When the cave stops shaking and everyone recovers their ground, several rocks begin to float upwards, spinning awake and hovering close to their siblings. Each one of them is protected by a tough, thick husk that looks gravelly and sandy to the touch, riddled with little dry, meteoric holes.

Hau lets go of Lillie and widens his eyes at the creatures. He takes one step closer to them, scanning the species. "You're all here! You must all be brothers and sisters, right?"

Hau's girlfriend – Gladion will _never_ get used to calling his sister that – pads over to Hau, smiling contently. "It looks like it. I wonder why they're all wearing their husks, though, when one of them doesn't have one anymore."

At her words, the bare Minior coos in response and hovers closer to the right-side wall of the cave. The group follows it accordingly, and the soft pastel hue shining from the creature throws some light into the wall. There are drawings made with a chalk-like residue sketched over the walls, with the star-shaped creatures standing beside large worm-like monsters, with the latter looming over the small ones like a lion on its prey.

Moon points to the worm-like monster. "I think those are the guys we're looking for! Are they your parents or something?"

In response, the Minior shrieks and bumps her forehead with its own, poking the drawing with its white point to emphasize a point nobody can quite catch. It looks a little more aggravated than natural, so Gladion makes a wild guess. "Judging by how terrible those big guys look, I think they are the Minior's enemy."

The Minior bobs up and down in agreement, along with its siblings. Lillie sucks in a sharp breath. "Dude, are those the _Steelix_?"

All eyes turn to the sorcerer. Lillie tilts her head. "The Steelix? Are you sure?"

"It's just that the drawings kinda remind me of those. I might be wrong, though." Hau looks at all the Minior gathered around them. Most of them have no eyes to watch him, but Hau is tense all the same. "I heard there's this group of very big bad snake-like monsters under the Sandlands that snack on little prey. I thought it was just a legend!"

Gladion looks at the drawing again. The 'snakes' Moon had referred to as 'worms' have bodies made of boulders and heads the size of a full house. Making very quick and rough estimations, the Steelix in the drawing might be around the height of Zeffarei's palace. "And I assume those guys have cornered all of you here? Are you scared of them?"

"If what Hau says is true and these are _the_ Steelix, they are doing more than cornering them," says Lillie, dismayed. "The Steelix are known for being predators of Minior more than anything, and they are especially prevalent in dry, bare areas. These are probably still wearing their husks because they're afraid of the Steelix."

Moon's expression falls. She treads close to the group of Minior. "We gotta get rid of the Steelix, then! How many of those are there in the Sandlands?" The bare member hits the Steelix picture once more. "Just one? Okay, that makes things easier. How can we call the Steelix to us, though? Can you guys do anything about it?"

The Minior's eyes dart to the drawing, and then to her, as though hesitating on what to do with its limited communicating resources. Then, it sinks to the ground and begins to make a small scribble on the floor. Despite its soft ends, it's making a thorough dent on the surface.

When it pulls away, the group crouches to investigate. Ilima's eyes widen; there's a small, rough musical note carved on the stone. "You can sing them a song?"

The Minior sinks and rises and then sinks again, darting to its siblings. It lets out several shrills of what one could assume is excitement, and then goes back to the group. The shielded ones are a little shier, but they inch closer nonetheless, separating to inspect their visitors as though they are seeking approval.

The scatter around the cave and end up separating the warriors in groups. The bare Minior ends up alone in front of Gladion, inspecting him with burning curiosity while the rock-solid ones hover around Lillie and Hau, Moon and Ilima.

Moon kneels to the ground to scoop up one of the Minior, who is flying low, and caresses its carcass with a pout. Gladion can't hear her well, but most of what she says bounces on the gem-full walls and through the other Minior's noises.

Her hand pats the little creature. "You guys must be so scared– but we're here now! I'm not gonna let those big bullies scare you." When Gladion notices her head is turning in his direction and _fuck he's been staring_ he turns away, looking at the Minior thoroughly as if he's not listening to every word she says. He hears her sigh, and then whisper. He's not sure he hears her right, but, "The bad guys always wanna get the best ones for themselves, eh?"

Gladion really, really tries to not let that get to him; but then, when he turns his eyes to her, the shielded Minior is pushing on her cheek, her skin plastered on rocky shelter, and Moon is laughing a little, even when a little zap comes to get her and she hisses but laughs and smiles and _Arceus she has a very pretty smile_.

A little smile appears on his face, gaze fixed on her.

"Dude, your heart eyes are showing. You're gonna melt her to a puddle."

Gladion nearly shrieks and Hau has the bravery to laugh at him. The Minior seems confused by this, prodding the swordsman's shoulder with its little arm-pointy end. "It's fine, he's just teasing me because he's salty we teased him about his crush and that we were right."

Behind him, Lillie squeals in embarrassment, but Gladion knows he hasn't hit any sort of nerve. While the two lovebirds dissolve into sweet nothings and the Minior watch attentively, Gladion's little friend watches only him with expectant eyes. He floats back and forth and from side to side like it can't decide where it wants to stay.

Gladion reaches out a tentative hand. The Minior presses its forehead against his hand and nuzzles it. He makes a face as though he's having his guts twisted from inside out.

The creature's surface, as Moon had commented, is glassy to the touch. "You're not very warm. I had expected you to be a little warmer, but I guess that's what a fallen star feels like." The Minior only squeals in response, wiggling out of Gladion's hold and to the swordmaster's face. The noise comes from somewhere within.

Gladion gives it the ghost of a smile, a rare warm one. "We won't let those guys touch you. I guess that's why you're also in this cave, right? You don't want the Steelix to bite into you." The Minior makes a noise resembling a shriek of horror. "I will take that as a yes. Though I'm not sure when or how the Steelix are going to come out if you guys don't sing that song. I guess you can't really sing with all those carcasses on, right?"

Suddenly, the ground shakes and the Minior that had gathered around begin to back off to the end of the small cave, and the heavy husks roll to the ground as though they are lifeless. Before they can ask what exactly is going on, the doors swish open and a _terrifying_ growl issues from outside, so mighty and loud it nearly deafens the five of them.

They run outside, and the doors slide close. In the empty, sunset washed desert of the Sandlands, a cloud of sand and dust is rumbling and breaking open, and after another push and a shriek, a gigantic Steelix comes from within the Sandlands, looking for the food it has been tracking all along with piercing, narrowed eyes made of glass and stone.

Moon throws her hands in the air, grinning. " _Yay_! That's where the worm is!"

" _That's not a worm_!" Gladion hisses, pointing at the creature. "That's a legendary predator!"

The predator in itself doesn't look very threatening, other than its height and the spinning debris around its neck. Two gem-like pillars are sticking out of its sides, and they make this creature look more graceful than threatening; however, when it puts its eyes on them, the Steelix hardens its eyes and hisses, making its way to them from the distance; the four warriors take a small reluctant step back, but Moon takes one forward, clapping her hands with a little smile.

"Okay, first lesson, Lils!" Moon moves her legs and puts her hands on her knees, stretching them. "When you're in the desert, you gotta put your all into it, or else the quicksands are gonna swallow you whole!"

"Hold on, are there any quicksands close to where we're standing?" shrieks Lillie, suddenly very attentive of her feet. Ilima looks down as well, blinking in confusion.

Moon gathers great pride from their confusion, or maybe it's simple, naked thrill. "I don't know! That's the magic of the Sandlands, you never know when a worm's gonna have you for breakfast or when the quicksands are gonna eat you!"

Gladion tiredly takes out his sword. "Am I the only one wondering if this is how she teaches her pupils in her academy?"

"We don't have time for that!" she nearly sings, pointing at the Steelix that seems very hellbent on eating them alive; it's not there to make any friends. "We gotta take that thing down so the little Minior can live in peace! Get your weapons out!"

"If this is our mission, then I suggest you stand back, Moon." She throws Ilima a withering look that he deflects with ease. "You have no weapons, unlike the rest of us. We don't want you harming yourself in these endeavors, which are clearly going to–"

Moon wordlessly walks up to him and grabs his wrist, holding it to the point of twisting it. "You were saying?"

Gladion is _this_ close to laughing about how color drains from his features. "I– nothing, absolutely nothing."

"I'm glad we reached an agreement!" Moon lets go of his wrist, leaving the Captain to scream in silence and cup the nearly broken joint. "Let's go get this dude, then! We don't wanna have him reaching our friends' den and having them for dinner!"

Hau takes out his staff and Lillie's hands conjure up sparks of fire. The little frown on her face as she looks at the foe before them is a little weak to be real, but she's being brave nonetheless and Gladion admires that.

"How are we gonna take that dude down, though? It's enormous!" Hau gestures at Lillie with his staff vaguely. "We can stand back and offer support, but it's made of rocks and stone! There's little we can do."

Gladion takes a careful step in front of Hau and Lillie. "Stand back and make sure _nothing_ reaches Lillie. Moon, Ilima, and I will take care of this– Lillie, don't give me that face. This is just a little too high of a bar to be considered training."

"That's so unfair!" she exclaims, lips pinched.

Moon rushes to console her. "Lillie, as much as I adore you, Gladbug is right. There's no way we're gonna be able to kill this guy, so we gotta play it safe just this time."

Feeling like he can wiggle a snarky comment, Gladion folds his arms and smirks. "Why? Is somebody not aiming high enough?"

Moon makes a face, narrowed between challenge and subtle vexation at his opportune quip. The bait lingers in front of her nose, ready to be taken, and Gladion counters the little glare of her eyes with a wider smirk of his own before they dash into the desert together, followed closely by Ilima.

From the sidelines, Lillie watches them sprint off. With a hand on her chest, she's left to stand back for the umpteenth time while her friends take care of the rest. Despite her high charge in Zeffarei and the great amount of chi she holds, Lillie has always been cast aside; it might be because she appears frail and delicate, like a damsel in distress; it might be because she sometimes _thinks_ she's just that, having lived under her mother's shadow for so long she no longer feels like a person.

Her friends always fight with vigor, with passion, and even if they fail, they don't despair over it; they pick themselves up and keep on fighting. Lillie doesn't want to stand back anymore. She wants to be like them, fight like them, be strong like they are. Sometimes, she fools herself into believing that just by wishing for it and sticking to their side all her wishes will come true, but after a while observing them, she has realized that's not the truth.

Maybe last time she fought properly, merely one move, it had been inspired by a fit of rage and not proper bravery. This is no universal foe, and she indeed doesn't _need_ to fight, She doesn't _need_ to protect her friends.

But she wants to. Lillie wants to feel the wind under her feet and finally discover who exactly she was meant to be. She had left the castle to learn how to fly, and this is the perfect opportunity to open her wings.

But what if she fails? What if she lets them all down?

A large hand grabs hers, soothing and familiar. "Go kick ass, Lils."

Her eyes are withdrawn from the battle to look at his boyfriend, wide and surprised. "But, they said…"

"They said we gotta stand back, but we're just as strong as they are. Gladbag and Moon are a little too concerned with their friends' safety, y'know; that's what I guess _nearly dying_ does to you." He doesn't laugh it off. "I can tell you wanna go kick some ass like they are, so I'm not gonna stop you. I know you're just as awesome as they are."

Despite her knowing she doesn't need his permission, she feels relieved to be told this, albeit she remains a little hesitant. "What if I can't live up to their expectations? I'm the Empress, but here I am, just… standing by and doing nothing."

"You got nobody's expectations to meet, Lillie. If anything, you gotta do your best and live up to your _own_." He takes a step towards her, and holds her by her shoulders, rubbing there soothingly. Her muscles melt instantly. "You'll never meet anybody's expectations fully– look at me. My gramps was a general in the army and I got amnesia during a silly routinary mission."

"It was _not_ silly, Hau."

"You get what I mean. We're gonna let down people very often, but I know you won't. It ain't in you to _not_ do your best. You got this." Hau offers her a dashing grin, one of those she had seen in paintings of beautiful families and ancient meanings of happiness. "And if you fall off, I'm gonna catch you. We're gonna catch each other."

"And what if you get hurt?"

"I'll man up and survive, even if a whole boulder falls on me. And you're gonna do the same. Moon has these unreasonable expectations when it comes to fighting, but she's got a point: we gotta do our best and our best only, and that's what you're gonna do now." Hau nods firmly, definitive; Lillie imitates the gesture, hands to her chest in conviction. "Now go out there and kick ass. I'm cheering for ya, babe."

Lillie's cheeks blister red; she can blame it on the residual heat of the night in the Sandlands. "We talked about that nickname already."

"It's just so cute when you get all blushy like that." Hau snickers good-naturedly, then points his staff to the battlefield. "'Kay, we can cuddle later, now is the time for a party!"

The two sorcerers nod and run enthusiastically deeper into the desert. Gladion, Moon, and Ilima have engaged in a rather unsuccessful fight against the Steelix, which Lillie attributes to the hard carcass wrapped around the worm-like creature. The two crystals protruding from the sides are gleaming each time anybody tries to strike it down, so Lillie quickly hypothesizes that's where most of its power is coming from.

Gladion seems to have the same idea, as he tries to hit the crystal with his sword, but is instantly knocked off by the creature. Hau creates a wall of sand to break his fall; Lillie steps right in front of Hau, looking up at the Steelix with fiery determination, hands balled into fists.

Then, she holds her hands up. "Everyone, get off the Steelix! I have an idea!"

Much to her surprise, everyone complies and falls to the sand; right after that, a flash of ice-cold light illuminates the sky and freezes the air all around the Steelix. Grimacing in focus, Lillie holds the creature together as her hands shake and tremble. The ice cracks a little, but then closes itself and continues to encase the monster as the ice little by little penetrates through the cracks of its skin.

 _Just a little more_ , she tells herself, _don't give up!_

She had spent too many years standing back, too many months doing nothing, waiting for the world to move; this is the day she begins to change. This is the day she stops being Lusamine's daughter.

Little marks of a cerulean blue have begun to appear on her arms and neck, eyes shining with power as her fingers stretch, the creature whines, and roars, and Lillie abruptly closes her hands to shatter its crust with a deafening crash. The spell is gone and the ice melts as it flies away, revealing a much drier, light, and thin skin underneath.

Lillie heaves to the sand, holding her chest with a pant. "You did great, Lillie," says Hau with as much affection as he can muster. He turns to his friends while he sinks to his knees, a soothing hand on her back. "You gotta take it down now! I'll try to keep it still while you're at it!"

Hau slams his fist into the sand and uses his other to hold Lillie together. A series of rocks craft themselves around the Steelix like vines, jailing it and keeping it from wiggling. The three warriors use it as leverage to climb up, up and up to the creature's upper body.

Gladion takes out his sword whilst keeping an eye on Lillie from afar. "I will go for its neck! You know what to do next!"

What Gladion had referred to is his ideal plan: Ilima and Moon would take care of the crystals and immobilize the Steelix while he made sure it simply stopped living all together.

What ends up happening is much different than that; Ilima does as expected and, with a graceful flip of the Steelix and taking out his blade, he's able to shatter the crystal to the right side of the monster, and with a surprisingly smooth motion, he uses his arms to fling himself to the other side and shatter the other one with his feet, landing on the sand safely. Moon is nowhere to be seen when Gladion looks back, making him growl in both disgruntlement and concern.

With one last fit of anger, Gladion swings his sword to his side and cleanly cuts through the neck of the Steelix, releasing a torrent of sand on his face and body because, fortunately, Steelix seem to have no blood in their bodies. The head comes flying upwards despite its colossal size, but Gladion sails across to the other side of the battlefield, pretending like not having Moon in his radar is fine, because he knows she can handle herself just fine.

It's fine.

And then, when he lands on safe ground close to Lillie and the rest, he catches a wisp of black jumping to the sky, floating above the head Gladion had just cut and then she's _falling_ against the head and delivering a solid kick to its head that manages to shatter the head into shards of rocks and sand.

Dumbfounded, everyone watches her land on the sand with a victorious pose, standing between the shards of Steelix as the body slumps to a side and falls right by her side. Arceus, she's insane, running to them now like it's nothing.

Gladion spares her leg one glance, watching her every move. She hurries over to Lillie, who is beginning to stand up with ragged breathing and a sigh. "Lils, you did great! You froze that guy over! That was _badass_!"

The blonde stutters out a laugh. Hau curls an arm around her back to help her stand, and Gladion takes attentive note of this. "Thank you. I… know you told me to stand back, but–"

"You did a great job, Lady Lillie," says Ilima, walking close to her. Much to everyone's surprise, he bows his head. "We would have never gotten this far into the fight if it hadn't been for your help. We are the ones who should apologize for holding you back."

Gladion clears his throat, uncomfortable. "You have nothing to apologize for. I was the one who told her to stand back, and that might have been uncalled for. I never mean to undermine your abilities in the slightest, but… it's hard not to be a little bit protective in scenarios like these."

With a teasing crooked smile, Moon puts a hand on his shoulder. He feels her weight on her touch. "What he's trying to tell you is that we're a little bit overprotective, but we know you're super strong– and you just proved us that, so yeah. Sorry."

Before Lillie can counter her point and offer another apology, the doors to the Minior cave open all of a sudden, revealing the little creatures that have gone out to taste the dry air of the night. The sun had sunk while the fight had been going on, and the sky is now littered with stars and the full moon illuminating the Sandlands with a wash of white.

The Minior squeal as they look around, with the bare one shining brighter than before.

When Gladion is sure nobody is watching, he slips an arm around Moon's waist, holding her upright. The assassin turns to look at him, with her hand still on his shoulder. "What–"

"Don't think I can't see you limping from one leg," he whispers back, frowning softly as he grabs her hand and drapes it over his shoulders for support.

Moon doesn't know how to counter his point, just as he had expected, and lets him hold her like this for a little. Gladion ignores the little smile she gives him and the even smaller 'thank you' she utters.

The Minior squeal in delight at the sight of the bare sky. They begin to spin and move in circles. The cracks on the husks shielding the creatures shine with a variety of colors, only for the carcasses to fall to the ground like dresses being stripped down. The squeals grow in volume, and in a matter of seconds, the five stunned warriors have a small group of beaming stars shining and twirling in glee right in front of them.

The Minior approach them, spinning and twirling like a cup of tea that after many years is finally full. The blue one from earlier approaches Gladion in particular, turning to look at each warrior for a few seconds before rubbing its forehead with Gladion's cheek, giggling to itself.

He's sure he just felt a little zap of electricity on his face, but he guesses that must be their way of expressing affection and joy; he nods back, biting back an earnest, moved smile.

And then, all the Minior sink to the ground simultaneously, shine brighter, brighter and brighter and then shoot towards the sky in a fit of squeals and shrieks of pure, unadulterated joy. Everyone watches them cross the sky, fly around like a flock of seagulls, illuminating the night like an incandescent rainbow.

Gladion turns to Moon just for a split second, all to catch her reaction; what he doesn't expect is for her to be staring at him as well, making him purse his lips in mild embarrassment. Moon gives him a little smirk.

"You know, I can walk just fine."

"No, you cannot," he says just as softly, chiding. "Only you would think kicking the head of a Steelix to dust would be a good idea. You're insane."

He pretends that he doesn't pull her a little closer, that his fingers can't feel every muscle of her waist and that it's not an oddly pleasant feeling, having her holding onto him for once, or that her lips don't look as soft as he has hypothesized them to be. That her awed smile at the show above them doesn't make his heart flutter. That her quips don't make him happier than they have the right to.

The group of stars releases a final squeal, and then they disappear into the night sky. Seconds later, there is a small constellation that has been formed in the sky, if only for a few seconds.

" _Thank_ ," reads Ilima, sighing contently. "As cute as these stars might be, they definitely do not know proper grammar, that's for sure."

Lillie directs a pout at him. "Call the Minior illiterate again and I will freeze you from head to toe, Captain."

And for the first time in a while, the five warriors laugh along as the small constellation disappears, and all that's left is the vague shape of a heart in its stead and the remains of squealing and joy in the wind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter literally cleansed my soul and watered my CROPS it was a FIELD DAY. It was all interactions ans randomness and HABE I EVER MENTIONED THAT I LOVE MINIOR WITH ALL MY BEING BECAUSE I DNDKSKLWW
> 
> dont look too deep into that Steelix vs Minior lore I just made it up and cracked the pot open
> 
> "As far as I know, though, the Minior can only be called forth with a very rare flute. It is rumored to be crafted from an asteroid's core and the magma of a young volcano–" [...] The rest peer over the table. Lillie blinks, unamused. "Yep. That's the Sun Flute." - Im so done w Moon
> 
> also Gladion and Moon um lowkey are getting flirty just v v lowkey /eye emoji
> 
> that exchange about the cursed books? idk where it cAme from but I like adding some background tO how these idiots live when they arent near death
> 
> Ilima blinks, jaw squared at the very visual example she has presented. "And what happened to that poor man?" / Moon looks at him for two seconds, then at the rest, and gets up to walk onwards in absolute nonchalant silence." - no fucks were given, amen
> 
> "Arceus, its skin zapped me!" / The Minior squeals in embarrassment." - Minior Anxiety
> 
> "In response, the Minior shrieks and bumps her forehead with its own, poking the drawing with its white point to emphasize a point nobody can quite catch." - pls adopt
> 
> "A little smile appears on his face, gaze fixed on her. / "Dude, your heart eyes are showing. You're gonna melt her to a puddle." - i love Hau sm even if he interrupted Daily Pining Gladion
> 
> Moon throws her hands in the air, grinning. "Yay! That's where the worm is!" / "That's not a worm!" Gladion hisses, pointing at the creature. "That's a legendary predator!" - make out already stop ARGUING
> 
> LILLIE IS GROWING W HAU WRITING THAT WAS SO SPIRITUALLY PURE DJKDKDKSL
> 
> "When Gladion is sure nobody is watching, he slips an arm around Moon's waist, holding her upright. The assassin turns to look at him, with her hand still on his shoulder. "What–" - concerned non boyfriend coming to the rescue
> 
> "And for the first time in a while, the five warriors laugh along as the small constellation disappears, and all that's left is the vague shape of a heart in its stead and the remains of squealing and joy in the wind." - this chapter was a goldmine in its worldbyilding and it was so fun to write and im so fond of it I cry


	15. Gravity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "And I also know the way she was looking at you after the fact, and how you looked at her, as well."
> 
> "And how did I look at her, then?"
> 
> "Like she was your Sun and you had no fear of watching it outshine you. Like you would die and kill for each other and no wounds would stop you from making it back to each other. I have seen you do that before."

"No way in _hell_ I'm gonna do that."

"Moon! You promised you would do anything for me!"

"I said I would do anything for you, yeah; I can cook for you, I could fetch your tents from a deadly river, I will escort you through a bunch of thieves– but this?" Moon looks at the sky, clear and open above her. She shakes her head. "No way I'm gonna go there. Absolutely not."

The day had opened itself with a very interesting request from Lillie and the even more interesting rejection from Moon. Gladion looks up from his seat by a tree to watch the two go back and forth on the subject, with Ilima and Hau shifting their attention from their card game to look at the two. Hau and Ilima's growing friendship might be probably one of the most unexpected twists from this trip, but one could argue that Hau will probably come to hold a high position in Zeffarei and Ilima might want to profit from that.

Thinking of Ilima as such a man lately requires a lot of mental gymnastics that Gladion is growing tired of. At least he's not ogling Moon now, though Gladion _does not care_.

He continues reading. Lillie sighs. "You told me you trusted me yesterday! And now you're just flat-out rejecting my request like I was asking you to, I don't know, eat a poisoned apple!"

"I'd prefer to eat a poisoned apple before doing what you just offered. That's just insulting, Lils." Moon points a finger to the sky. "Can you tell me _why_ you thought this would be a good idea, anyway? You know _why_ I'm saying no, too."

Hau chuckles. He places a card right in front of Ilima, and the latter's expression falls. "I told you she'd say no, babe."

The blush on her cheeks doesn't go amiss to Gladion. He chuckles under his breath as Lillie puffs them and folds her arms tight. "I thought you were brave and all that! You love challenges!"

"Provoking me might work for Gladion, but it doesn't fit you at all, Lils." A snarky smile follows this statement. "Again, what's gotten you so worked up?"

Lillie twists her lips as though she's bashful. "After what happened yesterday, I discussed with Hau that it could be good to practice a few spells. And I remembered that trick I pulled in Reikyuu and I thought I could put it into practice." She grimaces as she says the next part. "Admittedly, using you as a tester might not be the brightest idea–"

"It definitely _isn't_."

"– _but_ you're the lightest of all of us!" Lillie insists, sinking to the ground so she can beg properly. Moon arches an eyebrow, unimpressed, but eyes a little wide in surprise. "Lifting myself would defeat the purpose of the test, and you're simply the easiest! I didn't come up with you as a subject on a whim!"

Moon puts down her apple and gets up, hands on her hips. "Let me get this straight, then. You wanna use me for your sorcerer practice and treat me like a sack of potatoes."

Lillie winces. "I mean, yes."

"And you want my help," she takes a deep breath, "so you can toss me as high as the sky, no ropes, and no security and _nothing_ under my control other than your magic and my trust on you, right?"

"When you say it like that, you make it sound like it's a terrible idea."

"That's because it _is_!"

Seeing Moon at the reasonable end of the spectrum is out of this world, certainly, but she has a point this time only. Lillie's training would simply entail using her powers to lift Moon as high up as possible, without any sort of safety because the fall wouldn't be broken as easily as the lift was created. Maybe Lillie could throw her to the water, but that would entail another chase scene that should be avoided.

Not to mention that Moon might be over her slight blind-free-falling issues, and as far as he knows, she rarely has nightmares about it – though maybe when she mentioned that she 'sleeps better when she sleeps close to him', that meant that she still has nightmares; that idea makes Lillie's request less rational.

"Let me ask you this, then." Moon tilts her head in askance. There is no anger in her features. "When you can't lift me anymore, what are you gonna do?"

"I will try to let you down gently. If I focus, I should manage just fine."

"And what if something comes up very suddenly and the spell simply _disappears_?"

"Then one of us will catch you! And if worse comes to worst, Hau can fix something for you." Moon still seems skeptical. "Are you, um, scared? I'm no longer joking, I actually mean it."

Gladion's attention lifts from his book to her; Moon notes this shift, her eyes for one split second before it no longer is. "I… I'm not, really, but I don't wanna take any risks. We wouldn't wanna spend the rest of our free days in a hospital. And I don't wanna see you bawl over me breaking an ankle or two."

Lillie's eyes become round. "I thought you would be more concerned about your physical welfare more than anything else."

"Oh, I am. It'd hurt lots if this fails, and it's not like I wanna go through something like that again," she explains, swallowing. "But, uh, if you need me to, I'll push through. I'm a big girl. But only if you're sure this isn't gonna end with anybody in the hospital."

Ilima chuckles. "It truly is spectacular how much you are willing to bend for Lady Lillie's whims, Moon."

"It's not a whim! And we will not go any further than Moon is willing to go, either." She turns to Moon again, who seems a little more lenient now, albeit a notch too tense to be fully alright with this. Gladion wonders to what extent Moon really is fine with this. "When you say stop, I will stop lifting you. If you feel dizzy, hot, cold, nauseated–"

" _Arceus_ , am I gonna die up there?"

"– you tell me, okay? Just make a sign. Wave your hands, flail your arms, anything." Lillie turns to Gladion, who was having a great time on his own reading his Kareean book. "We will be right under you to catch you, right, big brother?"

She can't expect to use that nickname and appear fair and gracious. Gladion sighs, pretending that the idea of being around to catch Moon never occurred to him. "Sure. Considering she flung herself off a monster the size of the palace's tallest tower, she should manage just fine."

"Flying off those towers is fine." Of _course_ , "But this is completely different. I won't see where I fall until Lillie decides she's had enough, and I can't control anything around me. I'm not that concerned about control unless falling in any sort of way is involved."

Gladion is sometimes terrified of how Moon, as odd and extravagant as she might be, shares a few points in common with him. "We will be under you the whole time– just trust me, okay?"

Lillie holds out her hands. They are glowing with a soft lavender color, inviting and warm. Moon gingerly places her fingertips on Lillie's palms, hesitant, and suddenly, she is being lifted in mid-air by an unknown force that makes her squirm. Her hair floats as though she's underwater, and her expression is pure wonder and a smidge of confusion as she slowly gravitates upwards, growing more and more confused the higher she goes.

Gladion crosses his arms. Ilima and Hau get up to watch her go, gathering around Lillie. "Moon! As soon as you feel weird, you better tell us!"

Moon is floating higher up and up. Gladion isn't sure how the chemistry with chi and sorcery works, but he supposes that the further up she goes, the harder it is to keep one's focus on the target, thus the more chi is spent and the harder it is to perform the trick. He guesses either Moon or Lillie will put a stop to it in due time, but he's surprised to see that neither is doing any of those things.

Her figure is becoming smaller and smaller. He squints in concern, breathing deep. Hau puts his hands around his mouth. "Yo! How's the view from there?"

Muffled screams come from her, but no fright slips through. Ilima puts a hand under his chin. "How far up do you think you can go, Lady Lillie?"

"I suppose not much more. I'm surprised she hasn't drawn the line yet." In all fairness, it's Moon they are talking about. She could as well be having the time of her life up there. "Moon, can you hear me? How much can you take?"

The sad thing is that Lillie had told Moon to make visual or vocal gestures to communicate her discomfort, but neither of them is possible considering she's well past the tallest of trees and well over the rainbow; if this were to be Altaria Bay, she would be dancing with the seagulls now.

Gladion decides to step in, tense. "Lillie, I think you should drop her already before you get tired."

"Just a little more," insists Lillie, narrowing her eyes in focus. "I can get her a little higher."

"Lady Lillie, Gladion has a point. Do not be impulsive now," butts in Ilima, expression becoming a little worried. "You know Moon has a lengthy past with this issue. I think it has been enough."

Hau, wary of Moon's silence and Lillie's impulses, tries to call her again. "Yo, Moon! Are you doing okay?"

But she doesn't answer, not even a squeal or a scream; Gladion quickly goes over the symptoms Lillie had listed off, and trying to not panic in front of his friends, he turns to her to ask her to _please just lower her_ ; Lillie's eyes, however, are slightly glazed, unfocused.

Her nose wrinkles.

Lillie releases a loud sneeze, her whole stance crumbling, along with her focus and, thus, Moon begins to fall. The three other warriors scream the victim's name in terror.

Gladion, Hau, and Ilima immediately start rushing around to try to catch her. Moon falls like a star and a meteorite at breakneck speed, having no time to scream in demise because a pair of strong arms break her fall.

But they aren't Gladion's arms; Ilima has caught her with ease, and Moon's first instinct is to cling to whoever has caught her like her life depends on it. Her hands curl around Ilima's white, silky cravatte. Her eyes are unfocused, unblinking. "Are you okay, Moon? You took a rather unfortunate fall there."

Something in Gladion's stomach twists, scorches, and _seethes_ at the sight of his arms around Moon, though he's worried about her silence and lack of speech more than anything else. Her lips are pressed into a thin line, only parting to release a long, deep breath that causes her body to slacken.

"I'm fine." No, she isn't. "Let me down."

Ilima softly lets her on her feet, but the second she touches the ground, her knees buckle and Moon falls to the ground– though, thanks to the _ever so fucking charming Captain Ilima_ , she doesn't get to touch the grass. Gladion's right hand shakes, but he slaps his other on the wrist to _just stop acting up like this_. Ilima touching Moon gets an ugly rise out of him and, judging by Ilima's very entertained gaze on him, he seems to be having fun with this.

The Captain's brown eyes drift to Moon again. "Ah, Moon, it seems like you might be a little frazzled. What a curious sight for a maiden as skilled as you."

Moon doesn't say anything to him. If anything, she mumbles things to herself, half to him, and some to the rest. "I think I'm gonna crawl my way to bed, thanks."

Lillie walks over to her, guilty. "I'm so sorry, Moon! I didn't mean to–"

"It's fine." Moon manages to stand up, little by little, and with a hand to her jaw, she turns to Lillie. "I just, uh, gotta go sit down for a little. I'm a lil' shocked and if I have a meltdown over this, I'd rather have it in private."

"Could I at least assist you in any way?" Lillie insistently walks to her, holding up a hand. "Can you walk properly? Let me treat you. Hau has taught me some therapeutic magic, so that might alleviate stress a little!"

Moon cranes her head to Hau. "You're a saint, Hau."

"I'm a lil' more cautious than you all, fortunately," says Hau, nodding and accepting the silent gratitude. He grins, hands on his hips, feeling useful. "Go sit down for a while. I'll go give ya' some herbs later if you still feel sick!"

Moon turns to Lillie idly. "I approve of your boyfriend, both because he's one of my best pals and because he's always got handy things like that on him."

Lillie giggles along and carries Moon to a side of their makeshift camp, leaving Gladion, Hau, and Ilima alone. Gladion attempts to sink back to his place and delight himself with the book he was reading earlier, but focus simply won't come to him. Ilima exists, he exists _too much,_ and Gladion doesn't consider himself possessive, protective, jealous, or whatever but Ilima likes to look at him with _this smug ass look_ that he knows damn well to irritate him. He does it on purpose.

It's _so_ annoying because Gladion doesn't understand his own reactions, but maybe Ilima does, that cunning bastard, and Gladion doesn't like that at all.

While he's gripping his book so hard he might tear off its cover, somebody clears his throat before him, kind and patient. But when Gladion looks up, he finds the same good old knowing smirk on Ilima's expression, waiting like a viper.

"I would like for us to talk for a second, just you and me." Ilima nods his head in Hau's direction. "Hau should stick around in case Moon needs help."

Gladion squints. He hesitates. Something tells him that whatever Ilima wants to tell him won't be pleasant, just by the preface of 'wanting to talk alone' and that smirk of his. Still, he's curious to see if maybe, just _maybe_ , he's picked on Gladion's vibes and is looking to smooth the surface between them out. That would be annoying, but perhaps healthy and a step in the right direction.

It's not like Moon has any part in this; she's just as oblivious of Ilima's moves on her as expected, blissfully ignorant and blunt like a punch to the face. Very on brand.

Gladion nods. He leaves his book on the grass and follows Ilima to a spot by the river.

Ilima takes them a few feet away from the makeshift camp. Gladion had been tempted to ask Hau for help, but the latter had heard their conversation and he had given him this shit-eating grin that cleanly maneuvered him out of this sticky situation. He would feel like he's about to get an earful if it weren't for the fact that Ilima is too charming and pleasant.

He's so charming that he is gracious enough to ask for his side first. "Right, here we are. I thought we could talk all of this out like grown men without our swords, just this once."

Gladion arches an eyebrow. " _This_?"

Ilima nods. "I have been detecting certain… vibes, from you. A very odd energy. It's as though you are angry at me, or frustrated, or irritated. Maybe a mix of all of them." Gladion's throat seizes up, dry. "Tell me, what is this exactly about? Am I unpleasant to you? Have I ever hurt you in any way, shape, or form?"

"I– _no_." Gladion would very much rather lie through his teeth than unpack the whole can of worms he has in his heart, so he shoves his hands into his pockets and squares his jaw. "I've been told I'm not the friendliest of people."

"Oh, no. I do believe you are rather friendly. You have been friendly to me, at least, in your roundabout ways." Ilima nods, his smile growing impish and more knowing. "I, however, have a small question I would like to pose, as well as a theory."

"I mean… okay?"

"Does all of this," he gestures to the air around them vaguely, "have to do with my friendship with Moon?"

His whole being zaps shut with the sole mention of her name. _That's_ the worm can, Gladion realizes, a can full of cute little worms with a knack for his blushing, for making him sick in the right places and a habit of driving him insane in the best of ways. A can of worms he's been struggling to keep shut ever since the night of the festival.

Sharing this information with Ilima, though, who has confessed to being attracted to her, wouldn't be a good idea, so Gladion ties his lips into a bow and keeps quiet, yet with a grossly bothered expression that gives it all away.

"Ah- _há_. So _that_ 's what it was." Ilima takes great pleasure in Gladion's widening eyes. "Are you jealous?"

He clears his throat, frowning. " _Jealous_? Don't make me laugh." He turns his head, grimacing. "That's ridiculous."

"Mhm, I see."

There he goes with the damn know-it-all smile. It's that kind of smile he's seen a lot of people give him, superior and egocentric like none other. Ilima's thin eyebrows are slightly lowered, framing a smirk that is about to burst to life.

Gladion narrows his eyes. "You see _what_ , exactly?"

"That your words and your brain are much slower than your actual body– which is a pretty good skill for a warrior of your caliber, but I had expected you to be much more in sync with yourself than this." Before Gladion can ask _what in the living fuck_ he's talking about, Ilima raises a hand, smile turning a tad softer, more understanding than anything Gladion has seen before. "I believe many people have informed you of your behavior whenever Moon is around, both per my own request and your friends' desire for you to partake in a romantic relationship, but it's very obvious you have–"

"I _don't_ have feelings for her."

Gladion pushes that sentence into his mouth by a conscious effort.

Ilima doesn't buy it. "Ah, so you say, but your eyes can't lie. As collected as you might deem yourself to be, the experienced eyes of a man like me cannot be fooled." Gladion's right eye twitches. "I know I might have told you I harbor a certain level of attraction for Moon, but you are aware of where her feelings lie, are you not?"

"If you could stop being _this_ vague and get to the point, I would be _very_ grateful."

"Ever so impatient, are we?" Ilima laughs his concerns off. Gladion, knowing this will take a _long_ time if he keeps this up, sits down with a sigh. "If I started this conversation, it's because I will soon head back to Dawn Square Market. Hau has informed me that he wishes to teach us how to fish, so after we have stopped by the Roserade Foothills, I will be on my way."

Gladion tries to not be happy about this, but Ilima's current disposition makes it very hard. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, with this in mind, I decided to have a small talk with Moon a while ago." Ilima bites his lip, rather biting back a smile from forming while Gladion visibly recoils at the implications in his voice. "I'm not sure why you would be so reactive towards mine and Moon's relationship if you did not care, but for the record, she kindly informed me that I simply am 'not her type'."

The blond's eyes widen more than he would like to admit, and he turns to Ilima. Strangely, he's smiling. "She rejected you?"

"You could say she did." That's a rather vague way to put things into words, Gladion thinks. "I'm not sure if Moon is interested in notions such as love and… _deep relationships_ , if you will– but we are not together, and we are not pursuing a relationship, most certainly."

"But you _do_ like her, don't you?"

"My, for someone completely unconcerned for my love life, you sure ask questions, huh?"

"I have no business with your love life– or Moon's, for that matter. Believe whatever you want, but I don't care. At all." He adds that last part like he's digging himself into a hole that he knows he will never escape from. "I don't care about love."

"But you do, especially whenever she is around." Ilima gives him another smile, then takes a step closer to Gladion. He towers over him, but no intimidation flickers in Gladion's eyes. "As entertaining as it is to watch you two fight, because both of you are spectacular warriors, watching you circle around your bubble of denial is even more amusing."

"There's absolutely _nothing_ to be in denial about," he says sharply, a little _too sharp_ , in fact, and points a finger in Ilima's direction. "And you didn't answer my question."

Ilima's expression neutralizes into thought. While his disposition certainly isn't like Moon's, his constant smiles and pleasant words do look like hers. He is a little more poised than her, but even a _lion_ is more poised than that crazy woman.

He definitely has not been thinking about this, about _her_ , because he has absolutely no feelings for her.

"As hard as it might be to believe, I am not a man tied to relationships. I entertain a future with a small family, maybe a house, but as a man of the military, it's near impossible to achieve. My attraction to Moon is merely physical, and our relationship is based on respect." Ilima lets out a chuckle. Gladion's body feels just a _little_ lighter. "Moon doesn't seem to be interested in these affairs, and neither do you, but I suppose things truly change when you're around each other, huh?"

Gladion decides to blatantly ignore that pile of implications. "Moon is the most ignorant person to romance I have ever met. I doubt she even knew you were hitting on her."

"I wouldn't say Moon is as ignorant as she makes herself to be." Gladion's eyebrows sink even further, skeptical. "Much like Lady Lillie, she is much smarter than she appears to be, but I suppose that's my opinion. She certainly acted oblivious to my advances."

To his inner pleasure, Gladion still remembers the many times Moon had rejected Ilima instead of a witty remark. They are fond memories of the casanova being rejected by a stone-faced, passionate warrior. They are _great_ memories.

"Anyway," Ilima cuts in through his thoughts, even and collected, "my point is that you have nothing to worry about. I don't deem you to be that sort of overly protective man, but I understand your concern."

"Again, there is nothing–"

"Keep telling me that, but I hope you are _not_ telling _yourself_ that at night. Keeping oneself in denial is unhealthy." Ilima quickly squats to the ground, hands on his knees and his eyes perched on Gladion's, viperous and teasing. They are like Moon's but not as nice. "I'm _very_ aware that I nearly walked into you two about to kiss, did I not? And I also know the way she was looking at you after the fact, and how _you_ looked at her, as well."

There goes all his intent to forget about that night, his feeble mountain of cards crumbling down with the mention of that tiny word; it's a sensitive one, bringing memories of the color of red, of her smile, of the fire on her eyes and the delicate curve of her lips when she thanked him, when she also leaned in, he thinks, he's not sure–

"And how did I look at her, then?"

"Like she was your Sun and you had no fear of watching it outshine you. Like you would die and _kill_ for each other and no wounds would stop you from making it back to each other. I have seen you do that before." Ilima sighs long and deep, moved, almost. "In the time I have known you, I have never seen you look at anything or anyone like that. Neither has Moon, for that fact, but we know how she is about these things."

Gladion doesn't, but his brain shut down the second Ilima said the word 'Sun'. His cheeks might be flaring, he's not sure, because his body is tingling with the urge to run away with all the feelings he's packed within him, a perfect balanced tower. If he lets Ilima poke more fun into the wall, it will come crumbling down.

Gladion has decided to forget about that night, and that's what he wants to do.

But he's aware of what he felt that night, that exact second when her eyes caught the fireworks and she smiled. He _knows_ the way his heart squeezed, and prays that leaving that singular moment unlabelled – because all of his memories in life have a label on them – will make things easier to forget.

But Moon has never been easy to forget. He knows that much.

Ilima watches his expression shift, catching the dim pink on his cheeks. A brief lapse of laughter escapes him, airy, and he deems himself to be done. "I suppose my job here is done. Hopefully, there is no more animosity between us."

Gladion wants to keep on saying that there was nothing to be upset about, but all he can muster is a nod. He hopes his hand will hide his blistered cheeks as he drapes it over his mouth, pretending to be pensive when too many things are rushing through his head but really, he's thinking about none.

"I understand that it's easier to pretend like nothing is happening. It's the life of a warrior, I suppose; but I know you don't conform to the norm, and neither does she."

Ilima gives him one last earnest look.

"If you want her like that, don't let her go– because, knowing her, if she feels the same, she won't ever let you go, either."

* * *

That night, Gladion finds himself reading quietly in his tent after a long day. It's pouring buckets outside with what he deems to be leftover rain after so many dry spells. The noise is fairly pleasant on his ears, making his read a bit easier on the mind after what had been, arguably, an emotionally tiring day.

Lillie and Ilima are sharing a tent to his left, and Hau is, as always, sleeping very loudly right to his left. Several claps of thunder have struck nearby yet he hasn't woken up. It's an ability Gladion truly wishes he possessed.

Right as he is trying to remember who is keeping guard today, a hand presses on the fabric door of his tent. A tentative whisper breezes through the rain. "Gladbag."

Gladion would think it's a monster if it weren't for the little chuckle she releases when he crawls close to the door. At the end of the day, though, they are one and the same, and he doesn't zip the door open just yet. "What are you doing outside? It's raining, Moon."

"Can't you zip this thing open so we can talk like normal people?"

"We're _not_ normal people."

Moon, as if to demonstrate his point, pokes a finger through a small gap on the zipline and pushes the zipper to part the fabrics open. A wide grin greets him, no exhaustion evident in her face. "Good evening. Good to know you're not sleeping, buddy."

From within the tent, he arches an eyebrow, smirking. "You just called me _buddy_. Consider me terrified."

"As you should." Moon's playful expression morphs into a pinched frown, more stubborn and resolute than angry. "I need your help with something."

The fact that she's speaking loud enough to wake Hau up yet _he doesn't_ proves that Hau is a worryingly heavy sleeper. "You can come in and talk, you know. You're going to catch a cold, for real this time."

Her eyes are oddly sharp with determination, and she doesn't move from her spot nor does she try to pry herself in like the little salamander she is. She remains, crouching under the rainfall, hair matted on her cheeks and clothes in disarray, much like a lost maiden in a storm, but when she stares at him with _those_ eyes, a cold flame set ablaze, he finds her to be beautiful and beastly all the same.

She breaks the spell evenly. "What happened today got me thinking, y'know. I was such a wobbly mess I kinda, sorta, gotta redeem myself somehow. I'm very frustrated with myself." Moon holds up her fist, vindictive and serious. "I need to let some steam out."

In the past, he would have told her to go punch a tree until her knuckles bleed.

Instead, he waits it out.

Moon offers him a smirk. A challenge. "What about we pick up where we left off the other day, Gladbug?"

* * *

Fighting with Moon is like dancing. That's a comparison that has never changed over time; it's probably the only thing in their friendship that has had lasting continuity. It's a gritty kind of dance where they step on each other's feet and try to bite each other's hands off.

But there are a few things that have changed. There is a different rhythm in their steps, a sharp thrill that won't hold him back from grinning as he speeds to her, fully expecting her to dodge his blow and probably scamper away from reach. Gladion can foretell her next moves just as evidently, but she uses it nonetheless and he dodges it like it's second nature.

Where there used to be clear rivalry and an even clearer desire to simply declare a victor, it has now become a game of chase. A matter of simply trapping the other. A more chaotic, coordinated dance that has him chuckling under the rain even if the soil weighs him down and his fringe is sticking to his face.

Moon manages to land a kick on his stomach that sends him sailing to a boulder, where his back drags to the ground like a dead puppet. She sends him a wicked grin. "Look at you, letting yourself be hit so I unwind. What a _gentleman_!"

She only has time to chuckle and laugh as he picks himself up and lunges towards her with his sword in hand, decided to strike her on the chest, but she's bending backward to dodge his sword. Moon has never put any complaints about him using a sword despite her lack of weapons, which makes her crazier and braver. Much more than he would ever be.

Moon claps her hands over his sword and bends it to a side to send Gladion toppling, and right as she is about to stomp her boot on his stomach for a knockout, Gladion grabs her ankle and throws her to the ground, chuckling a bit too loudly. "Letting yourself get grabbed so easily is unlike you, Moon."

And she laughs back just as loudly. "You're getting away with a too much sass today, mister."

As he throws himself to her, sword aimed in a perfect strike, her legs curl around his waist – an action that brings _something_ down his spine – and she headbutts him out of her way, tackling him to the ground instead. She tries to wrangle his sword out of his hold, but he releases himself from her tackle and rolls away to stand up.

He smirks wolfishly, panting. In the short distance between them, she adopts a fighting stance that he's seen about a hundred times before, yet it never gets old.

Like the teasing monster she is, she beckons at him. "Come at me, Gladbug. I'm not even short of breath yet."

His stare sharpens. "Is someone getting impatient?"

"Is someone getting _slow_?"

That's the exact button she has to push for him to dash onwards again. He knows these positions perfectly as well; he would usually aim for her shoulder, she would turn around and hit him on a dead point to proclaim herself the winner. Whether he's a sadomasochist and enjoys her hands on him like this is unknown, but he does this more out of habit than out of spite or touch-lust.

So he decides to put a little spin on it, aiming his sword to her stomach, a much less avoidable injury, and she reacts as quickly as he had expected her to, lifting her leg to kick him off her space on his collarbone; enough to hurt, but not enough to kill him.

Except that she misses, with a gasp, and he ducks down to grab her leg. "You're getting predictable!"

He lifts her a little, gaining momentum to slam her whole weight on the wet soil and crown himself as the victor; but then, Moon twists her body and puts her hands on his shoulders, snickering.

"And someone's getting overly confident today!"

All it takes is the moisture of the rain for her limb to slide off his hold, and as she somersaults off his hold to stand right behind him, quick like lightning and deadly like poison, she grabs his arm and elbows him on the neck, pushing him to the ground with a simple dull hit. His sword flies out of his reach, but he has other weapons he could put into practice.

When she has him on his knees, Gladion twists his hand to grab her arm, and her pull suddenly becomes _his_ as he successfully pushes her to the ground under him, making sure to incapacitate her hands by pinning them right above her head.

She yelps in surprise and subtle pain, and he nearly feels sorry about it. Her body twists under his, infuriatingly ridiculous and trying to wiggle her arms out like that will work. Her expression is that of concealed rage, but there is a smugness to her moves that tells him she's got something up her sleeve.

He makes use of one of his hands only, large enough to contain her both wrists – albeit barely, because this is not a logical decision at all, and brings the other to squish her cheeks in an evil tease. "Looks like someone got trapped like a little kitty."

Gladion would feel bad if she wasn't snickering, smirking like a cunning cat. She's got mud all over her face, her hair, but she still looks radiant.

"This would've been much more exciting if I had my knives with me." Confoundingly, one of her legs – he _always_ forgets about those, her best weapon – moves to his shoulder. Well, there goes all his focus. "Oh, well. This is better than nothing."

And then, the lean muscle of her leg is hitting him on the throat, causing him to roll to his side with a cough of pain that she deliberately ignores. Gladion lands on his back, grabbing his throat with a wince of dull ache coursing through his muscles, getting to his head and nearly blinding him– damn it, Moon knows where to hit if she's fighting seriously.

When he opens his eyes, he finds Moon to be towering right over him, with little drops of rain falling from her hair to his shirt. "Looks like you're the trapped kitty now, _Gladbug_."

He has never stopped to watch her body after a fight, victory and pride being too far up his list to ever notice the way her eyes glimmer, her jagged breathing, the way her lips part to speak, or how her body shakes with leftovers of adrenaline that were for sure much more obvious on him than on her. He wonders sparsely if the look is just as appealing to him as it is on her.

A bead of rainfall drips down her neck and ventures into her shirt. He swallows. _Hard_.

Arceus, he wants to kiss her.

He wants to kiss her very, _very_ badly.

He gulps again, afraid that if he doesn't, he will just squeak or groan or maybe even growl. "You nearly suffocated me," his voice is just a thin thread of meaning. It's ridiculous, "with your leg."

Moon's eyes sparkle with something he can't quite pinpoint, but he feels a little warmer, suddenly; the rain barely feels like a hinder as much as it feels like a refresher.

"No good assassin lets its prey tackle them to the ground. Especially when they are so obsessed with pinning their hunter down."

"Can you blame me?"

The bait hangs in the middle, thin and frail. Only one move from her would shatter it, but he wonders what she would do if she were to move. Gladion is increasingly aware of the little puffs of air fanning on his lips, and he commits the pace of her breathing to memory. Some of the rain she is shielding him from is sliding down her neck, down her cheeks, down her nose.

If he wants to kiss her, all he has to do is lean up and do it. If he simply gathers some strength of mind and makes his arms and legs move, he can even tackle her to the ground and kiss her senseless like he's been dying to do for a few days now. Maybe even more, deep at the back of his mind.

But he doesn't move. The flutter of her eyelashes is entrancing, and the way she is looking at him so _intensely_ makes his stomach flip with pleasant shudders. Her eyes look a little darker than usual, hooded, and the hands that previously hung limply on the grass are now bunching the blades between his fingers.

Both his hands and _hers_.

One last drip hits her nose, and he takes note of its trajectory down to her bottom lip before she gulps and lets out a very faint squeak, moving off from him.

Gladion can barely hear her talking over the rain – which now sounds about ten times louder – and his heartbeat in his ears; she, however, sounds breathy.

"Consider your ass kicked, sir!" Moon gets up quickly, dusting off her clothes and ending up with her hands clean and her shorts dirty. She leans over him, offering him a hand with a grin that strategically belies the _whole bunch of things_ that just happened. "Need your edgy ass off the ground?"

Right. Focus. _You won't feel anything if you push it away for long enough,_ he tells himself. _Whatever that was you felt that night was just exhaustion. This is the same. Ilima is just messing with you._

But when he looks at Moon, he sees a crazily, maddingly irritating woman with a smile that could make his day and doom him forever in the same way he's doomed now. In the same way he's been doomed for far longer than he will ever admit. Moon is insane and his heart beats harder for her than anybody else.

Even when they're butting heads over the stupidest of things.

Even when she's laughing her ass off at his expense.

Even when they are exchanging blows and not the many words he wants to say.

And as he is about to go to bed, he realizes he can't sleep because she's burnt between his eyebrows like hellfire and sweet, sweet licorice.

Well, fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moon: hey let's fight our shit out because we don't have any feelings for each other and there will be absolutely no sexual tension at all  
> Gladion: sounds fake, but I'm emotionally deaf so okay
> 
> where do I EVEN BEGIN WITH THIS CHAPTER
> 
> Lillie: hi Moon let me taunt your biggest fears for the sake of science  
> Moon: sure  
> everyone and their mom: I can feel tragedy
> 
> I'm so happy with Lillie's development, like I know it's not the most important thing (since ahem we're focusing on loan here) but HOMEGIRL'S GROWN SO MUCH AND I LOVE HER SO MUCH MY BABY WITH A SUPPORTIVE BOYFRIEND
> 
> and then there's Ilima and Gladion's convo :)c isn't that interesting
> 
> I wasn't sure where to even go with Ilima and Gladion's low-key thing w Moon because I hate love triangles so I solved it like this and made Ilima come full circle in his superficiality that I didn't really mean to dwell into, and I didn't really want to give that much more depth to Ilima because there wasn't enough space, which is a bit of a mistake on my part for not making space for him in the fic other than as a consultant/bodyguard of some sorts, and as he mentioned, he's leaving soon because the fic is coming to an end soon :((( makes me kinda SAD GHFJDKSKDJV HFBKDNJSLKA
> 
> so Gladion will soon have free way to make a move on Moon
> 
> and considering how they ended up after battling (which they gave up on in lieu of not ripping each other's clothes off and [censored]) it's safe to assume it won't take much longer for the dam to break, but we still have a little more to walk before I give them the final push
> 
> remember kids walking hand in hand is a sin but staring at your allegedly platonic rival's neckline and thirsting over how it rains on her is definitely pure
> 
> next chapter is gonna be interesting :)))


	16. Roses in a Lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hau teaches everyone how to fish. This nearly results in death.

Hau had always described fishing as a hobby, but just by how seriously he's taking this endeavor, it might as well look like he's been a fisherman for all his life.

They arrive at the Roserade Foothills prepared to rest and hopefully get some sunbathing, as Ilima had stated that it's usually sunny during mid-winter in these parts of the Aedus Dominion. Gladion has never understood how the weather works there, and he thinks he simply never will.

In his endless graciousness, Ilima tells them that he will soon go back to Dawn Square Market to inform Zeffarei about all he's seen in the Kandrus Empire, and allegedly inform Wicke about his short-lived adventures with the group of four.

Lillie meets these news with expected sadness, but Ilima is quick to reassure her. "We will see each other fairly soon. Now that we are here, back to the Aedus Dominion, I assume it won't take much longer for us to see each other."

He has a point. If Gladion's estimations are right, they have spent around a month and a week out of Zeffarei and they're still not done with all the list of places Moon has offered to visit. It's weird to think that vacations are so close to being over.

The Empress sighs. "I suppose we will." Then, she looks up and around herself. "Why are we here, though?"

Ilima points behind him with his thumb, smiling. "Hau asked me about fishing shops within the Aedus Dominion, and the Roserade Foothills has a great supply of them." He places his hand under his chin, calm and pleasant. "Consider this as my parting gift, as a thank you for the good times I have lived by your side."

Yeah, _clearly_ he can't remember teasing the shit out of Gladion for his _not so platonic_ feelings and making him live in hell by taking advantage of his confusion. He's just a charming, innocent man.

And Moon grins. "We'll see you in Zeffarei in a little. I still got business with you, mister."

After some teasing back and forth, they finally venture into the small shop.

The Roserade Foothills are barely a village on their own. They are surrounded by the trees of the Verdant Pastures, the fields, and the butterflies, the greenery encompassing the lake's surroundings like a halo. Several windmills move in silence along the light zephyr of winter, and the waters of the Xurkitree Lake rock against the coast gently, brushing the blades of grass and the grasshoppers meandering on the coast.

Most of the people who live here do so in the gigantic trees that spurt from the ground, yet there are few of them hollow enough to have small buildings within them. The small, quaint fisher shop that Ilima refers to stands right by the sparkling lake and buried in the husk of a huge tree, half-hidden by vines but still visible to the plain eye.

Hau has been insistent about going fishing now that they have the free time, and the moment he steps into the shop, his eyes sparkle. "Look at all this stuff! It's like my birthday, but even better!"

Moon gives him a small smirk. "Next time I wanna cook for you, I'll just take you here and done."

"Dude, I'd die a happy man." Hau puts his arms under his head. His smile widens when Lillie walks into the shop and starts looking around. "I used to fish a lot after, uh, _that_ thing happened. The accident, or however you wanna call it."

"Yeah, we know," says Gladion, chuckling lowly. "We met you while you were fishing."

"Man, that was ages ago." The sorcerer turns to a small section with all kinds of bait and hooks. He licks his lips, impish and curious. "And I can't believe I'm gonna get to do that with my friends now! It's like a dream."

"Ah, then I suppose you must not be familiar with the arts of fishing in these parts, correct?"

The meek voice coming from the counter is unfamiliar to Gladion, but Moon is leaning over the surface very confidently, so he guesses they know each other already. She has a friendly yet meek disposition, with eternal pink staining her cheeks. Her blue eyes are deep like the sea, as well as the blue color of her hair. Gladion has never seen a color as eye-catching as that in his adventures, which is _a lot_.

Moon a hand in her direction. "This is Lana. She's a super good fisherwoman, too." The mention of this exact name calls Lillie's attention, it seems. "Lils, remember those super pretty pearls I took to the palace that I told Lusamine about? She took them out of the lake."

The Empress rushes towards her, gleeful, and Lana is flustered because _having the actual Empress in your shop is not normal_. "You _did_? Those pearls were so pretty!"

Lana gulps as Lillie takes both of her hands into her own, curious. "It would be unfair to say I did all the work… the pearls were fairly easy to take hold of. The Xurkitree Lake is a vault of treasures, and I was fortunate enough to swim so little and go home with so much."

Moon waves her off dismissively. "She's too humble. There are a lot of treasures down there, though, and you still gotta tell me all about those."

Gladion walks to Moon and Lillie, a smirk pulling at his lips. "You want to go treasure hunting so soon? You don't even have weapons on you, Moon."

"My hands are enough of a weapon, Gladbag." Lana mouths the word silently, confused by the name. "Anyway, she was telling me about the lake and stuff."

Lana turns her eyes to Lillie and Gladion, a little smile gracing her features. "I suppose you have come to fish, right? Do you need any recommendations? We offer many kinds of fishing rods, as well as line, hook, and anything you need!"

Moon shakes her head. "We got Fisherman Malasada with us. We're not gonna need any of that."

She blinks, confused. "What do you–"

Lillie and Moon take a fortunate step to the side right before Hau slams a basket full of _maybe too many things_ that have him grinning like a kid on his birthday; the counter rattles and a small mermaid figurine falls off to the floor. There are rolls of line, some bags full of bait and it wouldn't be surprising to find an actual entire fishing rod within that mountain of supplies. Lana is visibly intimidated by Hau's enthusiasm.

"I'm gonna take all of this!" The sorcerer's eyes are wide like those of a madman. "We got lots of fishin' to do today! I'm not gonna let a single bounty escape my mighty hook of doom!"

Lillie, like the patient saint she is, gently puts a hand on his shoulder. "Hau, _sunshine_ ," Gladion and Moon simultaneously purse their lips in emotion at the nickname, "that might be a little too much for today."

Lana begins to delicately undo the mess that he had made of the supplies, patient. "What are you here for, anyway? There isn't much to see in a place like this, much less for the actual, um… Empress. And her lackeys."

Gladion points his thumb at Hau. Lillie watches Lana untangle the line from the hooks with mind-blowing ease. "He wants to go fishing. As you can see, he's… very _passionate_ about it."

"I.. I think I can tell." Lana laughs nervously. "This will take me only a few minutes, so feel free to look around the shop as you please. Lines tend to get a little tangled with baits and hooks, so this is handy work."

Lillie nods and parts with a smile to catch up with Ilima, but Gladion stays. Something in Moon's eyes is dangerous and curious, so much so that it promises trouble and he's there to smooth out any of her intentions. She gives him a little look of 'why are you here' and he replies with a shrug. Considering Hau is also right by them, he's either too invested in this endeavor or he feels the same.

"So," Moon traces the wooden counter with a finger, drawing circles, "underwater caves, you said, right?"

_Arceus goddammit._

Lana nods, focused on the tangled mess as she speaks. "The Xurkitree Lake used to be the home for generations of creatures that, if the books are true, sung to make the Clampearl open up." Her brow pinches slightly. "They say that whenever humans took a pearl from the Clampearl, it would kill them. But that's no more than a legend."

Moon gulps, uncomfortable. That might be one of the few signs she's ever given of humanity when it comes to wildlife in general; well, and those times she would stare at a cat and feed it food. That was adorable.

"But not all pearls come from Clampearl, right?"

"Oh, of course not. Some are naturally created in the caverns. The Xurkitree Lake is much, much deeper than it looks. Some even say it might connect back to the Soakedge Strait, but nobody has given proof of that." With a yank, she breaks part of the line to release it from a hook. Gladion winces. "Countless species are living under the surface."

Hau jumps a little. "Are we gonna see those legendary jellyfish? The ones with the fancy hats? Gramps calls them 'Lady Jellyfish' but that's a lame nickname, you know. How are they even called?"

"Oh, do you mean Nihilego? I believe not." Hau's shoulders and, surprisingly, Moon's too, sink in defeat. "If they exist here, they must live far below reach. Moon knows this very well, am I right?"

Gladion and Hau turn to her, expecting an explanation. She rubs her neck sheepishly. "Well, yeah. It's a very rare poisonous jellyfish. I heard swimming with them was a unique experience, too, but I never found any specimen." Leave it up to her to try and _swim_ with a lethal species.

Hau grimaces. "Dude, what's your business with Nihilego? It's a super bad species! You could've been killed!"

Moon holds up a finger, grinning. "Poisonous creatures release toxins that interest us assassins a _lot_! I wanted to extract a little bit of poison and bring it to Zeffarei so I could check it out. Nihilego's toxins are one of the most powerful poisons in this Realm _and_ the next."

Apparently, Moon is not only a crazed assassin but also a crazed scientist. Gladion frowns. "You wanted to get stung to just make yourself some poison?"

"Pharmacy and poisons are the ABC of assassins. Lillie knows how to make medicines, I know how to make poison. That's the kind of balance you want in a friendship."

Lana clears her throat softly. "Yes, Nihilego toxins are deadly, indeed, but there are other dangerous creatures in this lake. The overwhelming population of fish makes it hard to see, but there have been many incidents because of the big predators that come take a snack at the weaker prey at the surface. Sometimes, bait falls into that category."

Their reactions vary: Hau and Gladion grit their teeth, Moon's eyes sparkle. "So they come to the surface? Could we maybe see one of them in action?"

"I doubt so, considering the hour it is." Gladion takes great pleasure in the dismayed sigh she releases. "You will probably fish plenty with all the supplies you have bought. Thankfully, they will be much easier to get out of the basket now…"

She presents the fixed basket to them with a small, proud smile. Lana is small and petite, but she can lift the heavy basket just fine as she hands it to Hau. The sorcerer pays for the items gladly before rushing out of the shop with them over his head, grabbing Ilima and Lillie as he bolts out the door.

Moon frowns; not at him not waiting for him and her, but something else. "So… no big beasts today?"

Gladion sighs and knowingly grabs her arm, dragging her out as Lana nods, waving nonchalantly. "There might be some treasure you can reel out of the waters if you try enough."

Moon bats her eyelashes in wonder. " _Really_?"

Gladion chuckles. Some things truly don't change.

* * *

After things have been bought and set up around the lake, Hau explains the basics of fishing in an endearingly simple way. He teaches them how to put the bait in the hook, as well as how to arrange the line and how to throw the fishing rod and not get one's hair tangled with it; it might have happened to Moon once or twice during her practice, and when Lillie playfully suggested she could cut it all off, Moon _nearly_ pounced on her.

Hau fishes three fish during practice, heals them, and sends them back to the water with a gracious gesture. He explains that they won't be eating them, so there is no need to keep them out of the water any longer. Hau also makes the careful comment that if _one_ of the fish looks good and is rare, perhaps they can have it with some sweet potatoes. The part with the sweet potatoes comes from Ilima, who smiles as Hau melts imagining such a meal.

After that, they part ways and scatter around the lake, not too close to one another but not far away, either. Gladion finds himself sitting down and waiting much more than actually _fishing_ , which he's always known to be a common thing yet he had never experienced. Time flows a little slower and the water ripples with occasional gusts of wind; it's a great day for fishing.

To his left, Hau and Lillie are fishing together, with her sitting between his legs as they hold the fishing rod together. It's strange to think that an energetic guy like Hau would enjoy an activity as idle as this one; but, whenever a little fish nibbles on the bait and they pull anything out, Hau radiates happiness and pride for his squealing girlfriend. Anybody would have expected Lillie to be more squeamish about wiggling fish, but life enjoys surprising him more often than not.

Their side is not as idle as _his_ side, so Gladion guesses they maybe got better bait than him. And speaking of idle, he turns his head to his right, where Moon sits, cris-crossed on the shore, and ready to take a nap. She had suggested that she could dive into the lake to fish by hand, but Hau had patiently sat her down on her spot and she hadn't moved from there all this time.

Gladion isn't sure what he told her to make her stand still for this long, but it's working like magic. With one hand under her chin and another slanted on the fishing rod, she looks so calm she doesn't look like herself. Maybe she's finally learning to enjoy calmness, to enjoy the little breeze that is toying with her hair, to undo the little pout on her lips that looks just a _little too adorable on her and–_

And then Ilima appears out of _fucking nowhere_. "Moon, aren't you catching anything?"

Moon turns to him, huffing. "No fish wants to grab a bite. I'm not even trying at this point."

Ilima nods. His smile holds a spark way too pleasant for Gladion to consider it normal and innocent. "Maybe if you stood up and tried to throw the bait _passionately_ , you would grab a fish just as luscious, wouldn't you agree?" Ilima offers her a hand. Gladion's grip on his fishing rod tightens. "Here. I will teach you how."

Much to Gladion's disgrace, chagrin and misfortune, Ilima puts his arms all over Moon as he teaches her the correct poses and the correct hand placement. The Captain had insisted that Moon is just a friend and just _attractive to look at_ , yet he acts like he's about to devour her, at least in Gladion's eyes. He is too close to her, he's too _much_ on her, but Moon acts like nothing is wrong, smirking along and letting him teach her in her everlasting nonchalance.

Does she even know he's flirting with her? Is he flirting with her?

Right as Gladion is about to give up and let them do their thing, Ilima catches his stare with a wag of his eyebrows, saluting with his free hand.

 _Oh, he's doing it on purpose, that damn brat_.

Gladion quickly gets up and saunters over to their side, hands deep into his pockets. Ilima lets go of her on sight, putting his hands on his hips instead. "Fancy seeing you here, Gladion. I was teaching Moon the basics of fishing. Hau might not have explained himself all too well, huh?"

Ilima smiles, more pleased with himself and Gladion's reaction than anything. Oblivious to all of this, Moon continues fishing, waving them off. "If you're gonna get all chatty, leave me and my fishies alone. I'm gonna become the best fisherwoman in this Realm."

"You won't with that terrible technique," comments Gladion, a perfect deadpan.

"Nor will you, sitting around like a bored dog with that grumpy frown of yours." At his frown, she grins mischievously. "Someone's in a bad mood."

Gladion silently strides closer to her and jabs her right between her eyebrows, expecting her to bite back with equal annoyance; yet, she gasps loudly when her fishing rod twitches and something tugs at her fishing line, so she focuses all her attention on that now whilst hissing like a hungry cat.

When Gladion looks back, Ilima is leaving, giving him another of those 'you know what to do' smirks. He _hates_ that guy.

And to his side, Moon has started a fight with the fishing rod, squirming to get whatever is fighting her out of the water. Amused, he smiles to himself. Her body rocks back and forth as the line tenses, then loosens, and her feet drag onwards a little, inching closer to the lake. "Looks like you're having trouble with a little fish, aren't you?"

Moon grits her teeth, an inch of strain stretching it to a frown. As much as he _loves_ getting a rise out of her, her struggle to get the fish out is worrying. "It's a heavy one! My damsel arms weren't made for a task as arduous as this one!"

"You're _anything_ but a damsel, Moon." Shaking his head, he spares a look at the actual lake. "Why are you taking so long to take this little fish out anyway? You shattered an entire Steelix head the other day with your leg."

"I don't know!" Moon stubbornly fights against the fishing rod, leaning her body backward. Confoundingly, the fishing rod bends in favor of the fish. "I must have grabbed a big one!"

Gladion sighs and decides to help her out; as much as he would love to help the fish throw her to the water – it would be far too funny – he decides against it simply because he's curious about the fish; as he soon discovers, standing behind her to help her reel the fish to the surface is… _something else_ , he decides.

His hands clasp around hers to tug at the fishing rod, aiding her with his extra strength, and in the heat of the battle, neither notice the gesture. Gladion quickly discovers an extra fact: Moon is right; this fish is way too big to be normal, but he continues pulling anyway.

The two warriors scream in pain as they use all their might to try and take the fish out of the water; it's no longer a matter of fishing, but pride. "What are you trying to fish, a treasure chest made of lead?"

"Lead is way lighter than this!" she groans back, pushing her back against his chest. They take a step back. The line tenses. "We're gonna fish a big one! Don't let it win over us!"

"I'm trying!" Gladion tugs at the fishing rod with a grunt. Her hands tremble under his, his voice coming in puffs of air in her ear. Her body vibrates against his, possibly in thrill, and she lets out a pant that makes him tense up in alert. "Just tug a little harder!"

"Dude, what the fuck are you doing?"

Moon and Gladion snap their eyes away from the water – which is starting to bubble up, much to their despair – to Hau, who is rushing to them in distress. Moon musters a weak grin. "Yo! What about you give us a hand, eh? We're trying to capture the king of fish in the lake!"

Hau very reasonably stands by Moon and _not_ behind her, but if anybody were to ask Gladion about the relatively compromising position, he wouldn't regret it at all. Hau, however, finds himself in the same struggle as them, wincing to try and take the fish out. He's supposed to be the bulky one out of the three and no progress is being made. If anything, the fish seems to be tugging even harder now.

"The hell are you guys tryin' to fish?"

"That's what we gotta find out!" Moon chokes out, laughing breathily as the three continue tugging. "Just a little more! I can tell it's starting to–"

The bait loosens for one exact second before the ground starts to shake, the waters splash rapidly as a figure emerges from within, jumping to the sky and washing the three unsuspecting fishermen with freshwater as they watch the leap, perplexed, blinking slowly. The gigantic fish lets out a moan, bass and vibrating, before sinking back to the waters and causing more waves to rock out of the lake and onto the three warriors.

A marine-colored fish, made of a thousand eyes and scales, looks at them carefully when the waters settle, as if analyzing them.

And then, it turns heel and dashes away, tugging at the bait to push the warriors along and into the water. The trio breaks into screams of boundless panic, clutching onto the fishing rod for dear life while the fish drags them along.

With their boots skidding on the transparent waters, traveling across the lake, Gladion rasps out a yell. "It's dragging us along!?"

"He wants to take us for a walk!" Hau exclaims just as loudly. The fish takes a harsh turn that nearly sends the three out of the lake. "We gotta let go or else it's gonna have us for lunch! I got a feeling it's just trying to run away from us!"

Moon, much to their surprise, laughs merrily into the harsh winds being pushed against them. "This is _awesome_! We're flying over the water! It just wants to have some fun, look at it!"

"This is _not_ fun!" insists Gladion, clutching at the fishing rod – and her hands – harder. "We'll end up losing control! We'll end up crashing!"

"Trash! We're gonna be fine!" She's all laughter and giggles and smiles and even as a gigantic fish is dragging them along, Gladion can't find it in him to be annoyed. She narrows her eyes at them, smiling like the impish demon she is. "Let's turn this into a game! Whoever lets go of our little– uh, _big_ friend first loses!"

The fish releases a big growl and wiggles its tail, making the three heroes move in accordance. Gladion hisses. "You want to make a game out of this?" Moon nods, and he should be rejecting her offer, but "Fine, then! You'll bite the dust!"

"Not if I make ya' two bite it first!" yells Hau, grabbing the fishing rod a little stronger, grinning. "We're gonna go for a walk with this little guy!"

The fish is trying to run away from the three, that much Gladion knows, but he's not going to tell them again because he's lost against Moon in a fight short ago and he'd love to see her taste defeat. He's tempted to sabotage her, to maybe act like a dick or like a _gentleman_ , knowing both will throw her off; the latter is more tempting, but with Hau right by them, things like those will be held over his head forever and he's not interested in that.

"Hey, you three!" calls a voice from the shore, melodic, like bells in summer. That has to be Lillie. "Let go of the fishing rod! You will get hurt!"

In response, they breeze past them and the fish pushes some waves in the duo's direction. Lillie blinks the water off her eyes while Ilima looks at himself in confusion. Moon snickers. "We're gonna be fine! We're running a bet!"

"I'm gonna win for both of us, Lillie!" yells Hau as they grow further from the two and deeper into the lake. "Just watch us win and throw Gladbag and Moon off their high throne–"

The rest of his sentence is muddled by the water he nearly swallows as the fish sinks into the lake. Behind the surface, everything is clear and blue; there are rocks of all colors around them, and while the bottom is dark and certainly steep, sparkles of color are calling Moon's attention and he's sure she would have let go to investigate if her pride didn't stop her. They sink slowly into the lake, eyes blurry and lungs going on full throttle to breathe.

The descent is easy at first, but then the fishing rod is aggressively yanked away from them. The myriad of eyes that dot its surface glint in unison. Bubbles escape the giant's mouth, and the lake seems to roar in unison.

Moon, sensing danger, tries to yank at the fishing rod to divert the beast's attention, but it's useless. Before Gladion can begin swimming up, a torrent of water charges towards him and slams him on the walls of the lake. Everything hurts dully, his lungs burn for air and he wants to move, but his legs aren't helping his case. When he looks up, he realizes that the three have sunken far below the surface and that he will run out of air far before he even grazes the sunlight.

The last thing he sees is light flaring to life somewhere to his life, and he wants to call Hau and Moon so they move, he wants to tell them they're _stupid_ for thinking this was a good idea; but he's underwater, he can float as he pleases, and he decides that's fine.

But then, maybe just a single minute later, his lungs taste fresh air as his body is slammed on the ground. Somebody pants to his right, drawing an outrageous puff of air.

Again, everything hurts; but then he's being placed on something soft, warm, slick, and rough hands are cupping his jaw and suddenly _things aren't that bad anymore_.

His eyes flutter open. Moon is calling him, eyes frantic in worry; but when he grunts, coughs and gasps for air, the worry dilutes the smallest bit.

Sensation comes to his hands first, under which there's grass and soil. His clothes are soaked, they feel cold and heavy; his head is on Moon's lap, he presumes, and Lillie and Hau are right beside him while something warm and pleasant hovers over his side.

"You're such a dumbass!" Moon exclaims. Gladion notices an alarmingly red liquid dripping from her forehead. "You had to swim up, not _float_! You're not that light, I'll have you know!"

Gladion squares his jaw. He wants to reach up, touch her jaw, then her temple, and then just her _fucking bleeding forehead_. "Your… you have a–"

"She's got a gash herself because you two are _impossible_!" berates Hau to his left. "I'm gonna start charging for these!"

"As you should!" butts Moon in, her eyes frowned with faux ire and very real worry and frustration. "You're a bombastic swordsman, you're an even better edgelord but you're _useless_ underwater! You gave us a scare there!"

He takes in a little breath and his chest hurts just a teensy bit. When he sighs, it's rough and raspy. "You have a wound yourself. On your _head_."

"I don't care! Next time I'm just gonna leave you floating down and let the fishies eat you alive."

Her thumbs brush the sides of his chin to a much more tender cadence than that of her words, and as he drifts back into slumber, the gentle voices of his friends bickering and the caress of her hands, he thinks he could very well spend his eternity here, even in pain and severely concussed.

He hears two things.

"He's peaceful whenever he sleeps, wouldn't you agree, Moon?" asks Ilima, very much in the distance, like an echo.

A sincere sigh escapes her, brushing the last embers of pain off his skin.

"You know full well I agree."

* * *

His risky strategy had earned him a full afternoon in bed, so when he wakes up, the sun is setting and his head hurts like absolute hell. When he tries to replay all the events that had led him to this exact bed, all he thinks is that too many things had gone south too quickly.

Frankly, maybe chasing after what had probably been a legendary lake monster hadn't been the greatest of ideas, but his performance during the wake of the fun hadn't been exactly great either. That's what he calls for falling into Moon's trap of fun times and laughter when, in reality, it always ends like this.

He buries his face in his hands. It had been too pathetic for him to handle. Moon had been one hundred percent right when she called him out for being too weak. He's supposed to be the Emperor, he had promised to protect everyone– he had promised _her_ to protect her, and yet...

More importantly, he can still recall the feeling of Moon's thumbs on his chin, her fingers on his cheeks, and with that comes the image of red on her face and a very visible strain in her expression. Lungs like lead and eyes a bit too dry, he kicks the sheets off his body and strides out of the small infirmary and takes to where he supposes everyone is: in their camping spot.

As he's grouchily walking through the trees, undoing the useless bandages on his arms, a merry, playful voice comes from somewhere above him, on the trees.

" _Within the Karee Empire, there are plenty of places to discover, but so much you can see without ghosts chasing after you_ ," Moon reads out loud. Gladion's face drains of all color. "That's a neat beginning. I hope you know this book is wrong when it says we're great dancers. I mean, I'm good, but this book is full of stereotypes."

Slowly, careful to not give away his trepidation, he raises his eyes to her. Hanging upside down from the tree, hands on the open book, a bandage wrapped around her head is getting loose. He wonders how she can read like that.

Gladion swallows a lump. "Who gave that to you?"

"Myself."

He doesn't know what's worse: anyone finding out about his fixation on the past of Moon's homeland and telling her or the actual minx finding it herself. She's smiling like a demon and looking at him as though she knows more than he does himself.

He reaches up, holding out his palm. "You were rummaging through my things?"

Moon shakes her head. Much to his bitter disappointment, she continues reading. "Not really. I was doing some stuff and the book fell out of your bag. It wanted to meet me as much as I wanted to meet it." Her eyes morph into sharp knowing. "So… this is what you were reading?"

"... Yeah."

"You were reading about the Karee Empire?"

"Mhm."

She blinks at him, confused, and then throws him the book and _nearly_ hits him on the head. "Didn't you think about asking me about all this stuff? It's not a bad book but I make a much better guide."

"What about we talk about it while you're a little closer and not hanging from a tree? Didn't you get hurt at the lake earlier, too?"

Moon twists her lips, thinking. "I guess you got a point."

All it takes for her to reach him is a gracious swing and an even better flip in mid-air. Sometimes, she looks like a bird in full flight, as though she's immune to notions like time, gravity, and space. Gladion knows better than to call her invincible – as he did that too many times before and it took him to a path of near no redemption – but he appreciates her greatness all the same.

And by the way she's looking at him now, it nearly feels like she's doing the same, smiling sincerely as she points at the book he has in his hands now. They are shaking the slightest bit. "It's kinda charming you went out of your way to learn about these things, but I wouldn't have minded explaining them to you."

"I bought the book out of curiosity." That's half a lie. "No other intentions other than that." Oh, that's a big lie. He doesn't know how he gets away with that one.

Unsuspecting, Moon nods. "So that's how you knew so many little tidbits about the Karee Empire. Why did you buy it anyway? You've never been interested in these things. Did Lillie tell you to read about it for your, uh, royal duties?"

That's an easy thing to say yes to, even though it's not the full truth and Moon _always_ wants the full truth. Admitting that she had been a big part of his addiction to the book would blur the lines between them even further, and as much as he loves indulging into the little cute, soft moments they share, this isn't anything she needs to know.

Maybe he can tell her in the future, or she can try to read him now because _his cheeks might be heating just a little and she's too observant_. Lips pursed, he looks away. "Royal duties, yeah."

"Mhm. I guess that makes sense." Her eyes focus on the bandages that he still hasn't removed from his arms. "How are you feeling?"

Her eyes are a little too earnest to refer to his physique only. She's always had this way of getting her intentions through that never fails to blow him away. And in accordance to her question, he sighs, chuckling. "Am I supposed to be fine? I almost drowned."

Moon catches the little crack of defeat right away. Her eyes follow him as he sinks to the ground, back flat on a tree's bark. She purses her lips. "I might've been kinda harsh when I took you out of the water."

"No, it's not that." Of course it isn't. She had had a point, or maybe his mind is making it seem that way. "You had a point, anyway."

"What about?"

"About me being too weak." His voice turns a little more soft, vulnerable. She descends to his side instantly. Their shoulders brush. "I should have put a better fight and–"

Moon places a finger on his lips to silence him. Gladion will _never_ know how a gesture that childish has him under complete obedience every single time. "Remember when I told you you had to be less harsh on yourself? This is one of those times you gotta listen to me and get it through your thick skull."

"How can I _not_ be harsh?" He exhales heavily. His shoulders fall forward with the movement. "I'm going to become an _Emperor_ in the future. I should be ready for these things, and a _fish_ knocked me out, of all things." Gulping, he turns to her, troubled. "I made you a promise, remember? I promised you to protect you, and I–"

"You couldn't have done anything. I was the one who went along with it. None of us but Hau were ready for it. It happens sometimes, and we gotta be ready to accept these things too." Moon looks just as troubled about this, very much against this idea, but the vigor in her eyes tells him she knows she's in the right. "We can't do everything on our own, as fun as it is to think that way."

Gladion's lips turn into a dry smirk. "Coming from you, that's a _lot_."

"Because it's true!" she chuckles, smiling sincerely. "We've been saving each other's asses for a while. I saved yours today, and Hau saved ours. You're gonna be an Emperor, yeah, but you're not gonna be alone. We're gonna be with you." Her lips crook in playfulness. "I'm not gonna obey you like a dog, though. You better be ready for me to fight you anyway."

And Moon turns away from him again. In the distance, Gladion notices, the rest are sitting in front of a forming fire, with Ilima reading something to Lillie and Hau as they cuddle contently. Gladion has always been a man of standards, consistently headbutting any wall on his way to meet them; Hau and Moon never met his standards, but he accepted them anyway until he met theirs and, eventually, they met his. Lillie has never been part of that scheme, and neither has Ilima, but he knows none of them will ever leave him even if he forces them to the other point of the universe.

The woman sitting right by his side is breathing proof of that, knees under her chin as she stares at the group. She's always been too wise for him to handle, too vast for anybody to cage her in. To think she's by his side after all this time is a miracle.

A silly smile graces his visage. "You did say I would make a good Emperor, right?"

She nods, distracted. "I don't have a single doubt about it." Her head twists so she's looking at him. Moon props her chin on her arms, giving him a coy smile. "I can't think of anyone who would do better."

"Not even yourself?"

"Not even myself."

He notices that her eyes are oddly focused on the group, but considering she's not squealing about Lillie and Hau, it's fair to say she might be thinking about a certain rose-blond heartthrob.

His brow sinks again. "Can I ask you something?" Moon blinks at him in askance. "You… and Ilima. You're friends, right?"

Thankfully, she doesn't notice the little edge in his words. "Yep. Pretty good friends."

How does he put his thoughts into words? How does he show his curiosity without also showing her that this is the first time he's harbored feelings for someone, that he's both scared and a little tense, that he knows he shouldn't be, but that he's scared of _losing_ this nonetheless? That there is nothing to lose but that, at the same time, there is a _lot_ to lose?

Not that he cares about her relationship with Ilima.

He doesn't. Not at all.

Okay, maybe he does. Just a little.

"You know he… has been flirting with you, right?"

"Yeah."

Gladion mishears this as a 'no, absolutely not' and he wants to repeat himself, but when her affirmation catches up with him he nearly loses his shit, gaping.

Of course that little cunning _viper_ knows about it. He should have known better than to mistake her romantic naïvety for blindness. The grin threatening to break through her smile proves that his dumbfoundedness is very visible.

"You _knew_?"

"How can I _not_ know? I'm not _that_ innocent, Gladion. I can see a flirty bastard from about seven kilometers away." Her voice is snarky and airy, very much enjoying his confusion. "I know much more about romance than you all bargain me for. I mean, I don't _get it_ , but I've read enough books to know what it looks like."

Considering their latest advances whenever they are alone, he wonders how much truth that phrase holds, but he lets it slide. "You knew he liked you?"

"He made it very obvious. All the chivalry, and the flowers, and, you know, the way he talks. It looked like he was always about to tear my clothes off and it made me uncomfortable sometimes, though having somebody hyping me like that is kinda awesome." Moon rolls her neck from side to side, sighing. "But it's not my kind of thing, chivalrous romance and all that. It's too sappy."

Gladion chuckles. "It's not like that's the only kind of love that exists, you know."

She looks at him like he's just put the apples on a tree. "What do you mean?"

"Not everyone is going to open the door for you or shower you with flowers. That's just Ilima. And the way one portrays their feelings comes from how they behave, so…" Noticing how she's begun to look at him, eyes wide, he looks aside, realizing he's spoken too much. "It's nothing."

"No, go on."

When he turns to ask her what she means and _why_ she would even want to listen, she laughs to herself very quietly.

"Lillie and Hau have a very cookie-cutter kinda story, y'know. It's very cute, and the books always make it look like _that_ and not like…" If Gladion were in his right state of mind, he would say she's blushing, but the mirage is gone within a second. "It's just very classic and simple. Traditional. It's not _my_ idea of love, anyway."

The question slips through before he can stop himself. When he turns to look at her again, he notices she's staring right back at him, and that they are a little closer than 'rivals' should be, out of the battlefield.

"What's your idea of love, then?"

Because his idea of love isn't holding the door open for her, either.

His idea of love isn't showering her with flowers.

His idea of love isn't the gentle, romantic loving that seizes the heart and makes the roses bloom; it's comforting, reassuring, brave. Like home. Adoration packed into a series of stubborn headbutts for the sake of bickering and the lazy nights spent beside one another, holding her close, keeping her safe.

And he can't help but ask himself if she sees it the same way.

Her eyes are wondrous, wide like the world, open for him to drown into. Between them, his hand brushes hers, the tips of his digits seeking the spaces between hers to get his point across; when his thumb finds her and gives it a tentative brush, reckless, longing, a little gasp escapes her, but she doesn't escape his touch. The color of her cheeks, of her eyes, is something he could get drunk with any day.

And just by how she looks at him, intense, like a soft blaze under his chin, she might be just as captivated as he is.

"Dudes, we're having dinner!"

And before she can say anything, lips parted to speak, Hau has to butt in, causing Moon to blink furiously and stammer a response that Gladion half hears, half doesn't, too hung up on an answer that she never gives as all she provides him with is a nervous smile, a grin, and her hand on his arm to take him back to the group.

Maybe, just maybe, they share the same views.

And maybe, just maybe, he will get to hear what she wanted to say one day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oooooou MOTHER that was CLOSE. fingers brushing. intense gaze. sweet nothings. we WERE SO CLOSE UNTIL HAU COCKBLOCKED US
> 
> but we're fine. lona is fine. /breathes deep, we're finally at the end tail of the squad's vacation as we'll be going back to Zeffarei soon where Wicke will cry of happiness bc her children are finally healthy even if Gladion will die of a heart attack bc Moon exists
> 
> Ilima is officially no longer with us as next chapter takes a v interesting turn and we're getting closer and closer to the end. don't worry the ending is satisfying and I think it's pretty obvious lona's gonna be canon soon but we gotta make the surface a little smoother
> 
> there's one last wrinkle
> 
> I'm just making things nice and easy I promise
> 
> I'm gonna be quiet because next chapter I'm gonna UNLOAD in the author's notes because I'll be screaming
> 
> so I'll just SCREAM ABOUT GLADION AND MOON ALMOST HAVING THE *TALK* AND THEN COLLAPSE
> 
> SEE YOU IN A FEW DAYS LADS, WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO THE GLORIOUS DAY OF CANON LONA BYE


	17. Serendipity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion has a heart to heart with Guzma, and then hands it all to Moon.

"Brother? We have a problem."

"A problem?"

A quiet nod. "A pair of Blackring pirates just tackled Moon to the ground and carried her away to the Shipyard."

That's how his day kicks into motion, with Moon being kidnapped in what will probably go down as the worst abduction in history. The Blackring has never been known for being _subtle_ with their crimes, but announcing _where_ they are taking Moon is making things a little too easy.

With this in mind, Gladion expects to find Moon tied up with a cloth all around her mouth, probably rambling about how Ilima hadn't bothered giving her the money he owes her before leaving. As they rush to the Blackring Shipyard through the pastures, he thinks she could be hurt, that maybe these people are disgraceful enough to not know who she is and the trouble _they_ are getting themselves in.

Instead, what he finds is her free, boundless, suspended within a fish tank meant for sharks – a very fortunate analogy to the woman they have in the water. And weirdest of it all, she looks pleased as punch, rotating quietly behind the glass.

Three bandits watch her, only stopping their bickering to take in the arrival of Gladion, Hau, and Lillie; then, their banter resumes.

"Dude, what was the bright idea!?" asks the grunt, gesturing at Moon and then her friends, whose expressions are perplexed and bewildered. "When we said we needed the girlie, that's because the boss asked for her! Why did ya' throw her there and _why_ did ya' tell her friends to come along!?"

"She wouldn't stop asking questions and fidgeting like a damn cat, and I got enough problems already, man!" The grunt crosses his arms, groaning. "She told us to take her to a real prison and I got no patience left! She's been there for a while and she's still breathing!"

Moon, in her everlasting silence and nonchalance, hits the glass with her palm twice to call the angry bandit's attention. With a blank expression, the assassin slowly flips her middle finger at him.

The bandit would have shattered the glass with his boots if it hadn't been for the rest holding him back. Hau stifles a puff of laughter under his palm while Lillie is trying to be polite and not encourage Moon's rude behavior.

"I _swear_ that girlie's pissing me off real bad! I don't even get why the boss got a spot for these weirdos! She's lucky there are no sharks in there today!"

Hau grimaces. "You keep sharks there? Where did you leave them, then?"

"She told us that sharks like her, so we put them elsewhere in the meantime," comments another bandit, much less violent than her peer. "I got no clue if this chick is for real, but she's pissing him off real bad. It's kinda funny."

"Why did you think taking her by force would help? There are much easier ways to lure her in." Gladion gestures in their direction, and then hers. Moon touches the floor and spins backward, knees under her chin. "You didn't want to take her hostage anyway, right?"

"The boss asked for her for whatever reason, and he's one hell of a pain in the ass when he's insistent." The aggressive pirate is finally calming down, much to the trio's relief. "We took her here, she said she was getting bored and started jumping around. We fucking _tied her down_. She was jumping around, arms and legs tied and headbutting her way to Guzma's office through our mates."

Lillie looks at Moon. A smile is tugging at her lips. "Were you _that_ eager to see Guzma?"

Moon, cheeks puffed, nods. The other pirate nods as well. "She's got some guts to jump from building to building. And then she said that we had to catch her to stop her, and to take her to a real jail and… now she's there. When the boss said she's a brat, he wasn't kidding."

Silently, Gladion pads to the side of the fish tank and taps his knuckles on the glass, knocking to call her attention. "Are they telling the truth?"

Moon nods. She tries to talk in the water, yet all that comes out is bubbles. Her arms are free now, as well as her legs, and the measly ties are under her on the floor of the fish tank.

Gladion presses his knuckles on the glass for her to bump his fist, smirking appreciatively. "Badass." Moon quietly presses her hand against the glass, flashing the rest a grin.

"I guess you could take her outta there now, right? She ain't gonna last forever," Hau says, looking at Moon in deep thought. "I bet that water's cold as ice, dude. It's cold as it is here, I can't imagine how cold it's gotta be there."

Gladion notices that the grunts are wearing dark jackets over their usual uniforms, still matching their color scheme. "There's a pretty harsh blizzard coming our way and the boss is setting stuff up around the base. He's gotten a lil' soft for us lately. It's kinda dope."

"Dude, don't say that in front of these guys. They're gonna think we're softies, and I already have enough anxiety as it is!"

"Nah, we ain't softies, ya' hear me?" One of the bandits treads close to Gladion. "The boss might like y'all a lot and I guess you're kinda strong, but we're still the most badass company in this whole ocean, got it?"

Hau nods, pleasant and bright. "Totally! At least you ain't trafficking with stolen weapons or drugs anymore!"

The bandit, with his eyes blown wide, turns to his friends. "We did _that_ and I didn't know it!? Nobody told me about that, dude! I know I nap a _fuckton_ but did I miss that much?"

"I didn't know either! That's cool as shit!"

"Yeah, yeah!" The bandit turns back to the three of them, completely ignoring how Moon waves her hand at the other male bandit in the group. He treads close. "You've turned the boss into a damn puddle of goo! But he's still the most badass dude on the planet! You three better watch out!"

Gladion puts his hands on his hips, groaning low. Moon holds up her fist at the other bandit, then two fingers, and then her palm. "As long as you don't… do what you used to do, we won't have to meet again. Guzma seems to be reforming you, at least."

"I don't wanna be one of those boring law-abiding guys! I left my job at a restaurant to come here, I don't wanna go back to being boring again!"

" _Dude_ , you'll never be boring for us," says the other grunt, her palm on his shoulder. "You're the coolest dude around when you're not kidnapping lil' girls and tryin' to drown them. You're awesome."

The bandit blinks, turning to his mate. " _Dude_." His hand lays itself on top of his mate's, and he wipes a tear away with his free hand. "That's so corny and shit."

Gladion turns to the fish tank again, arms folded. Within the fish tank, Moon holds up a fist. The bandit imitates her; she spreads her fist, then holds up two fingers. The bandit nods in understatement.

"Huh? Maybe she's finally running out of air?" asks Lillie, blinking at the display.

Moon and the pirate hide their hands, count to three, and they reveal them: Moon has scissors, the pirate has paper. The bandit groans and Moon snickers in the water. She offers her hand again. The pirate shakes his head and hides his hand again.

Hau, Gladion, and Lillie nearly fall to the floor. "Is she… playin' paper, rock, scissors with him? And _winning_?" Unsure how to answer, Gladion simply sighs. "How is she even breathin'?"

"That's a pretty good damn question, considering' they tossed her into ice-cold water and it's fucking _winter_."

Posture slouchy and hands deep into his baggy pants, Guzma descends from the wooden slope of the pier they're standing on, expression heavy with disdain for his peers. Yet, as Gladion looks a little closer, his features are an inch less harsh and a few degrees softer, but it's barely there. Guzma might have pulled up a thin veil of compassion after all that has happened in this Realm, but the same harsh core remains and his subordinates are scared shitless _instantly_.

When her eyes fall on the leader, Moon sighs a puff of bubbles and gestures the grunt before her to move away. When he's out of her way, she puffs her cheeks, leans back and headbutts the glass to shatters, draining the contents from around her until she's standing alone in the fish tank.

Moon calmly kicks her way through the glass, squeezing all water out of her hair. "Took you long enough, slowpoke. I don't like acting like I'm some pet to entertain your men."

Guzma's lips crack a flat, wide smile. "We got our own issues to take care of here, girlie, and we got a big ass storm coming our way tonight and I'm already fucking done with it. If half the base gets destroyed, then so be it."

Hau, however, ever the generous and selfless man he is, raises his hand in offer. "I can help ya' out with that if you wanna. This place could use a lil' shield just in case some nasty winds wanna blow those wooden barriers off."

Gladion narrows his eyes, skeptical. "You are going to _help_ them?"

"Considerin' they helped us _big time_ with Cyrus, it's only natural I wanna give 'em a hand, dude." That's a pretty fair point that shuts Gladion up like magic. Hau grins wide at this, turning to Guzma, whose eyes are bigger than ever now. "Where do I gotta sign in for some good ol' helping?"

The pirate leader considers him for two seconds. The nod that follows it is heavy but approving, and he turns to his subordinates next. One of them is trying to shake the water off his boots. "Take him to the barricades. I'm gonna take these guys to the watchtower, take him there after you're done with your shit."

Much to Gladion's surprise, Lillie walks close to Hau, offering a small smile. "I would like to come along too if you don't mind."

"Huuuuh?" Guzma tilts his head in wonder, staring at Lillie like she's grown a second head. "The Empress wants to mingle with my dirty, rough dudes? What's gotten into ya, blondie?"

Lillie swallows the scorching nickname with grace. "I'm a sorcerer before the Empress, and I must help out those I encounter… even if they are questionable people. At least for now, I hope." One of her hands curls around Hau's forearm, and the latter blushes in formidable crimson. "I will give as much as I can. The Aedus Dominion tends to change its weather rather abruptly during winter, so we should get to work quickly."

The pirate doesn't answer right away, deciding to whistle instead. "Damn, you got your mom's stubbornness, I'll tell you that. What's gotten into you?"

It's good that a man of Guzma's caliber is appreciating Lillie's changes, but something tells Gladion he's not being exactly kind about it. Moon thankfully picks up on this as well. "You know those worm guys from the Sandlands, the Steelix? They're about 5 trees high, maybe 6 if you're feeling generous."

"Yeah, those worm rock dudes. Heard a buncha' legends about 'em." Moon nods. "What's up with that, though?"

"Lillie froze an entire Steelix from head to… _tail_." Because Steelix don't have feet, Gladion realizes half-way with an ungraceful expression. He shifts to stoic pride right away again. "You could say she has grown a skill, unlike many of your grunts."

Guzma curls his nose at that.

"He's telling the truth. Lils is super badass now," Moon comments, ignoring the way Lillie is squealing into Hau's shoulder with a blush. "If you doubt her, she's just gonna prove you wrong. You better believe us or _else_."

The pirate is much more inclined to hear about this from two reputable warriors and not the 'little silly Princess' that he had once regarded her as; judging by his expression, that truth might not disappear that easily.

Guzma snarls. "So she beat up one of those dudes? Am I supposed to believe a teensy lil' girl did–"

Moon twists her body to square a punch on Guzma's stomach, causing him to double over with a groan. She grabs her wrist. "I told you to believe me or _else_ and this is the _else_ part." She leans forward to meet his eyes, finding a pained grimace on his expression. "How does that feel?"

Gladion smirks approvingly; as much as he detests useless violence, he _adores_ seeing bullies getting a kick where it hurts– or, in this case, a punch.

"Ugh. I had forgotten how strong your punches are, damn." Guzma releases a deep breath, squaring the hit, and waving at his bandits to leave. "Take them both to the barricades. I'll take these two with me– though I still got no idea what you're doin' here. What do you even want?"

Gladion and Moon wave at Lillie and Hau as they leave, with the latter flashing them two finger guns that Moon instantly reciprocates. Gladion takes notice of Moon's wet hair. "A towel for her would be nice."

Moon smirks at him. "What a gentleman, asking for a towel for the fair lady. How _touching_." Guzma groans at their exchange, muttering something about 'flirting' that Gladion decides to make no comment on. "A towel would be nice, yeah. Your dudes also told me you had something for me. It's why I'm here. I supposed it had somethin' to do with what I asked you to get me a while back, remember?"

Gladion arches an eyebrow at her, curious about this, but before he can ask, Guzma beckons at them to follow, face stricken with realization. "Yeah, that's right. But next time you punch my guts out, I ain't gonna show you nothing no more, girlie. And the same goes for you if you ever try this shit, Goldielocks."

"My name is Moon."

"And mine is Gladion."

"Whatever."

As Moon proceeds to explain on their way to the watchtower, she had asked Guzma to help her carry out some field investigations in Bakiria while she searched for the secret monastery in Bakiria, which Gladion isn't sure she's found as of yet. He hypothesizes Moon's request might have to do with the Pokétta Stone, which he recalls her mentioning in her lengthy letters that might have drawn a few soft sighs out of him.

When they reach the watchtower, all that Guzma gives her is a single letter colored yellow, and she retreats to a corner to read it carefully. The glint in her eyes, the focus, and the frown make him think this is important, so he decides to ask later.

Guzma hands her a towel and drops on the old sofá of the watchtower's hall, sighing. Gladion's eyes watch Moon closely, from afar, careful to observe her gestures and the smallest of frowns on her expression.

"So the rumors are true, eh? You're smitten for the girlie."

Gladion's posture instantly tenses up, throwing Guzma questioning glare that is anything but subtle. "What are you talking about?"

Much to his disgrace, his cheeks blister, just the smallest and dullest of pinks that Guzma's big eyes catch on like wildfire in a forest. "Whenever my dudes came to me because you were kicking their asses, they'd always mention you two as an item; y'know, a couple. Lovebirds. And other very crappy nicknames. Some even had bets as to when you'd get married and all that stuff. Weird shit."

"Considering Moon and I are anything _but_ a couple, it is pretty strange."

"But you wanna get together with her, eh?"

Gladion wills himself to be smooth, unsuspicious, and free of any tease that this manipulation master could unleash on him. Instead, what comes out is acidic and a little too quick. " _No_."

And evidently, Guzma sees right through it; surprisingly, he doesn't laugh, but merely stares. "Damn, you're slow as hell, kid. I've seen tectonic plates move quicker than ya', and they ain't looking at somebody the way you do."

Why is everyone so obsessed with the way he looks at Moon and _why_ do they have to remind him of that one weakness? Fortunately, Moon is slow in that department, or simply idle and ignorant of his affections, but one could argue that the way they bicker dulls his obvious interest down. Perhaps it makes the ordeal more evident.

Gladion's hands ball into fists on his lap. "What is it to you, anyway? Did you and Moon become buddies?"

"Buddies? That's a sappy ass word," Guzma says, raspy and erratic as always, but he chuckles, "but I guess we kinda are. I got a thing for troublemakers, and she's kind of an expert. When she swung by into my office, she told me she wouldn't leave until we struck a deal. She's got some ways to negotiate, that brat."

Gladion looks back, treading down memory lane to the point where they first met. If the usual tactics for conviction were based on insistence, then Moon's tactics are as brazen as tying herself to a burning tree and refusing to leave until somebody pours water on it.

The swordsman sighs. "You have a point, I guess."

Guzma nods. "Not gonna lie, I kinda wanted to turn her down, but I didn't want to, either. Some of my homies kinda like her, and it's not like they're under _her_ orders, but they're gonna follow her around if she tickles 'em in the right places." The leader rubs his palms all over his face, muddling a gravelly sigh that escapes him. "Dude, she ain't even that menacing. None of you are menacing at all."

It's weird to think about the fact that Guzma, the leader of the most fearsome pirate company in this realm, is sitting right in front of him and complaining about Moon and him and _everyone_. As much as Gladion had refused to put the Blackring in a pedestal when it comes to menace, he had subconsciously dehumanized Guzma to the point he always considered him to be impossible to redeem in his mind. To some extent, he still is a despicable bastard that has done terrible things to the many people Gladion has met, but much unlike his mother, Guzma at least has his feet on the ground and his peers highly respect him, and he's expressed regret for his actions a pair of times.

Seeing him talk and express himself like basically any decent human would is refreshing. And foreign. Guzma is not half as bad as he had imagined him to be.

And there is still one point that Gladion can't understand.

"We might not be the toughest ones in terms of appearance, but you must have trusted us to come to Ravenspair and fight Cyrus off, right?"

The other's eyes widen, but all surprise is stripped in favor of a snicker.

"As I said, Moon's kinda hard to say no to. She's the most annoying chick in existence, but she kinda won us over." Guzma's eyes close in contemplation. "The Ivoreed screwed us over. Royally. They were a bunch of bastards that only wanted to take stuff from us for a cheap price. I ain't proud of letting them mess with the shit I care about, y'know– and when Moon walked in and was all like 'you got this chance to get revenge and kick his ass', I snapped into action. I didn't wanna leave you kids in the hands of that bastard– kids should be playin' around and, y'know, maybe vandalizing a few buildings."

Gladion, while not liking being compared to a kid, decides to push that very annoying notion aside in favor of surprise. The emotion takes over his expression in waves. "You… wanted to genuinely help us?"

"You helped me out, and I had to help ya' out somehow. It's a matter of pride, kid. Pirates ain't in debt even when dead– not even with punks that can only cause trouble, like you three."

And the blond stares, _stares_ , and stares, looking for any sign of manipulation, a bluff, anything that will prove that Guzma is lying and that he's still in his old ways because Gladion is chronically cynical, and no change comes that easy; but Guzma is trying, he realizes, and just by the way he speaks now he looks much more relaxed, chill, at ease, even if he still has the eyes of a complete, utter psychopath.

And he's looking out the window to their left now, eyes pensive. Filled with life.

Then, he sighs and leans back onto the sofa. "And… I got somebody that I can't let down, y'know. She wouldn't have liked me rejecting a kid that helped me out. I don't think that whatever that brat's after is that special, but Plums would have beat my ass if I said no. I kinda wanna be a lil' less mighty." Guzma's eyes become longing, lost in nostalgia; it's a glance Gladion has seen before, because he's been in his shoes. "That's what she would've wanted."

Sometimes, Gladion likes to think that he has some of Lillie's 'good faith' blood: she's always seeing the best in people, putting her hands in the fire and just making them better people by sheer belief. Maybe, he thinks, this is what it looks like to have faith in people: a solemn expression, a nod, and then, a small smile.

"I understand what it feels like, wanting to live for somebody else," Gladion murmurs, folding his arms. "It's good to see things are looking up for you after all that has happened."

"I've got a crew to take care of, I can't just spend the day cryin' like a sap. It ain't my style." Guzma smirks smugly, pressing the heel of his boot on the table between them. "Though maybe we got more stuff in common than I anticipated. You've got the same pathetic lovesick look on your eyes, it's kinda cute."

"Again, I–"

"Spare me the excuses, kid. Pirates also got a way to see these things, y'know. The Blackring's got some issues with romance and drama, they're all fucking melodrama queens." He chuckles to himself despite the ardent words, but then squares his jaw as he looks at Gladion head-on. "Listen, I know it's gonna sound rich comin' from me, but if you're gonna spend your whole life running away from these things, you're just gonna end up alone and sad, and that's _lame_."

Gladion, tongue sharp and eyes like those of a viper, narrows his irises to fire. "What do you know about all that? Weren't you all about being lonely and powerful?"

Only when he says those words does he realize how much of a dick move it is, bringing things from the past up and holding them over a man he _knows_ is trying his best. As much as he hates being given these types of talks, he knows he has a point, very, _very_ very deep down.

Before he can apologize, though, Guzma snickers.

"Heh. You got all burnt and pissy. That's kinda funny, actually– I used to be the same, y'know, whenever any dude would mention Plums and I kinda should tie the knot. We never made things official– pirates ain't made to be loyal or official. We're here one day, and then the next, _boom_ , we're gone." Guzma's chest swells as he breathes in. "We knew we had some shit goin' on, but we were just damn cowards and we did nothin' about it before it was too late."

Too late being Plumeria brutally assassinated on top of a desk, per Hau's words; too late is Guzma probably grieving over somebody he never confessed to, and too late is Gladion losing Moon to her desire to protect him. He's familiar with the _too late_ 's and the _too bad_ 's.

Guzma catches the veil of emotion swishing on Gladion's eyes, smirk quirking up an inch. "You get it too, don'tcha? It sucks."

And Gladion clenches his jaw in defense. "Moon won't leave, though. Things have changed."

"Yeah, but life doesn't give a fuck if you have changed; or her, for that matter. She's not gonna stand still forever, and look, nothin' is gonna happen to her, but you never know." The captain shrugs. "So what, you can protect her? That's cool. Just wait until somebody snatches her or she simply decides to move on, or life takes her away from you. I've seen that happen a lot before."

Gladion's eyes curl in distaste, but there is no anger in his eyes; there can't be any anger when part of him knows he's right. "Why are _you_ giving me this talk?"

"Believe it or not, I don't hate ya', and I've seen those puppy eyes before. Plums used to tell me I had those sometimes, but I never explained it to her. I told myself we'd be much better if we didn't complicate things and kept our shit to ourselves– but we were fine at the time, and we could protect ourselves. We were fucking dumb, that's what we were."

The white anguish washing over Guzma's voice is hard to miss, but so is the stern undertone that makes his words definite, resolute, like a hammer surrounded by bubbles but hiding lead within.

"Moon and I are fine as friends. It's not like she feels the same way– I doubt love is something she can do, anyway."

Now, those are terrible lies that he shouldn't even be bringing up, even if they are for the sake of protecting his feelings from being exposed. Moon has been kind to him more than once, so much so he's sure she's stubborn and sassy deliberately and that she's mostly kind by default. At times, she's been affectionate, too, but that's a ground he can't dwell into because the memory of her skin under his fingertips still burns in his head and blisters his cheeks.

He doesn't know if he's getting to know her better, or if they're growing at the same time and thus dancing in smaller and closer circles around one another. He doesn't know if she will ever reciprocate all of this, because relationships aren't something he can do just yet for several reasons, and–

"Then you can stop staring at her like you're gonna burn her. Though maybe she's into that." Gladion growls in delicate pink, making Guzma's eyes glint, playful. "But don't waste your time, kid. I think she'd appreciate that honesty if it comes from ya'."

Gladion is about to ask what he's talking about, but steps interrupt him. A soft "Hey," snaps him out of his stupor, and as he turns, Moon is grinning down at him, pointing at the window, "it's kinda snowing outside. I can barely see a thing through the window."

If Gladion listens carefully, he can hear fearsome howling winds coming all around the watchtower, but that's not something he confirms until he's looking out the window. Everything is covered in white, and where once stood a glorious pier with shabby houses now sits a thick layer of snow that is growing by the minute. He wonders if Lillie and Hau are okay, first, and then how the _fuck_ Moon and Gladion are going to find them in this weather.

Guzma walks up to them, step heavy. There's a scowl on him even before he's seen the awful weather outside. "I knew it was gettin' chilly. Whatever." Turning to them, he darts his eyes from Moon to him with nearly _devilish_ intent. "We got some cabins at the top of the hill, so I guess my dudes must have taken the blondie and Malasada boy up there."

Moon's lips curl in a big 'o'. "Woah, you got cabins here? Those fancy ones from the paintings that overlook the sea?"

"They ain't that fancy. This Shipyard is a lil' tidier than the Outpost, and some interns here have built some damn nice places. They kinda like to get together when it's cold and get wasted with cheap booze." Guzma points at the window with his thumb. "If I were you two, I'd start walkin' before you get snowed in. Wouldn't wanna have two snowmen in my estate."

Moon, much to both men's surprise, has already swung the door open, acting nonchalant about the cold. All she does is rub her hands, but the gesture looks like a mere performance. "Where's that cabin? I could use some hot chocolate now. Or some fire."

"Up the hill. There's a bunch of trees around, and a lil' well. It's the only hill around here, you'd have to be real dumb to get lost." The leader dismissively waves a hand at them, gesturing at them to leave. "Scram already. You're getting my sweet hall all wet and snowy. Gross."

* * *

Gladion and Moon leave the watchtower when the door has been shut behind them, leaving them exposed to the terrifyingly cold air of the Shipyard. Gladion finds it extraordinary that such a blizzard can fall right by the sea, but storms can't be picky, he guesses. Moon is idle by his side, a hand flat over her eyes as she looks over her surroundings. She says something he can't hear over the wind, and as he tries to tell her that he can't hear her, Gladion realizes that falls on deaf ears, too.

So, with great intent and hoping that the blizzard will be a little milder up the hill, he reaches for Moon's wrist and drags her through the Shipyard. Even when she's caught up with him and walking steadily, she doesn't let go of him, and neither does he let go of her. At some point, his hand slides against hers nearly unpurposefully, but only when she gives his hand a little squeeze of warning does he realize that her touch is pleasant and very warm.

So warm in fact that his face feels hotter. It's unfortunately practical, and because he's a practical man, he lets it slide.

When they are at the foot of the hill, Moon points at the summit with a big smile that outshines all of the white around them. The wind has gotten a little milder, so he can hear her a little better. "That's the house, I think! Look at all the snow around here!"

She's the one dragging him along, and he only minds it because he wants to be a little more careful. As little as this hill is – though this barely classifies as a hill, as it's literally under a mountain – there are higher zones a little further away, all of it a shadow of gray mountains in the distance, and considering how heavy the snow is right now, that could very well turn into a–

The snow abruptly gets stronger, fiercer, so much so that he loses sight of Moon for a second, so he curses, turning around erratically as he can imagine a thousand scenarios happening in his head: something rolling over her and knocking her out, burying her in the snow, or maybe a tree falling right on her. Her warmth is missing under his hand and he's barely gotten a word with her, which makes this even more upsetting.

It certainly isn't as upsetting as the sight of her is, looking up ahead a few feet away from him as she looks for him with the same intent and vigor. She's shouting his name into the wind, and a few traces of worry can be discerned in her expression and voice.

And then comes the upsetting part, which is the gigantic ball of snow that is rolling downhill and about to crush her alive, but Gladion is quick to remove his bag and sprint into action. The winds get stronger before they loosen up, and before the snowball of ice and pain reaches her, Gladion wraps his arms around her and tackles her to the ground while his name leaves her lips in a choked gasp.

The massive snowball rolls downhill a few feet away from them and then crashes with the barricade of the Shipyard with a spectacular crack. Moon is safe under him, her hands trapped between them, and Gladion can hear the staccato of her breathing right on his neck.

Gladion carefully pries himself away from her, letting out a pant. The winds have begun to calm down around them. He regards the crash absent-mindedly. "Placing a Shipyard right under a hill was probably a terrible idea."

It takes Moon a few seconds to sit up. Their blended forms have left a blob of space in the snow. "It's Guzma we're talking about. Don't expect him to be the brightest."

Oh, that's a very ironic thing for _her_ to say, considering that man is bright as _fuck_ when it comes to Gladion and her. The former points at her accusingly. "You almost got ran over by a _snowball_."

She offers him a cheeky grin. "I know, right? It was awesome! I wouldn't have minded trying to kick it off route, though. Guzma's gonna lose his shit when he sees the damage."

Gladion gets to his feet and offers her a hand. He smirks at the thought of Guzma being met with some retaliation for his nosy business earlier. "Let him suffer for a little."

With a chuckle and a snicker, she's up and on her feet again. The ongoing wind from the storm is still threatening to make them part, but her arm finds a way around his as she looks up again. "I think that's where the cabin is."

"Are you doing okay? You're not exactly overdressed, you know."

Moon's smile is smug and knowing. "I put these shorts on this morning so I know, yeah, but I'm fine. Maybe a lil' pissed that you didn't let me kick the ball where it hurts, but I'll live."

"That was probably solid ice among other things. It would have flattened you like a pancake."

Moon's eyes brighten. "Do you know what that would've made me?"

He arches an eyebrow. "Stupid, maybe?"

"No." Her lips curl wickedly, letting go of his arm to jog up the hill. " _A snack_."

It takes Gladion two seconds to get the bad joke before he's sprinting in her direction, as she's already taken to the hill in bursts of laughter that echo in the snowy winds. He makes sure to remember the colors of her clothes, as well as the exact tone of her hair and skin to not lose sight of her again.

A few trips and rolls and quips after, they reach the promised cabin, arms interlocked again as Gladion walks half a step ahead. When she asks why, he says that he's taller and she responds that he's edgier, too.

And when they face the door, his height seems to be useless. "Do you think there's anyone in there?"

Moon's eyes drift to the windows, the chimney, and then the door; that's when her lips smirk and she rubs her hands as though she's about to eat an entire table of food. "Only one way to find out."

Her first decision is to be logical and knock on the wooden door, and later to bang her hands on the surface in hopes that whoever is inside hasn't heard their call. She fumbles with the doorknob, only to find that the door is closed and that no keys can be discerned on the ground under all the snow.

She gives the door a little kick. "Looks like there's nobody inside."

Gladion's brow pinches. His fingers twist the fabric of his coat's pockets. "Where did Lillie and Hau go, then? There aren't any other houses or cabins around here."

Groaning, Moon places her forehead on the door, dramatically defeated. "I guess they're with Guzma's dudes, and that guy forgot that he's got his homies' rooms to make use of." Moon twists the freezing knob again while Gladion tenses up in angering realization. "Why would he even lead us up here? I'm gonna kill him the second this storm is over."

Of _course_ Guzma would act like a very unnecessary and unwanted wingman and lead him and Moon to a private location like this. Is leaving two people stranded in a snowstorm his idea of romance? No wonder he and Plumeria didn't get very far.

Gladion sighs, half a groan, half a sigh. "I couldn't care less," even though he _does_ care, "but we have to get in. We can't stay here for much longer, or we will–"

Moon takes two careful steps back, then a leap forward and swings her leg to strike at the door, which swings open and rattles as the hinges become loose. Only the knob is in disrepair now, because Moon's precision is downright _terrifying_ and these are things he should take into consideration more often.

Gladion blinks, biting back a smirk. "I guess that's one way to do things."

"Told you the 'kick down, knock later' method works best, Gladbag." She pats his shoulder with a snicker, walking into the dark cabin. "You gotta learn to believe me more often."

He chuckles to himself, following her into the cabin, and decides to leave the conversation at that.

The cabin is small and quaint, enough to host the parties Guzma had mentioned before. There is a chimney with logs to their left, then two beds – thank _Arceus_ – to their left and a door by the chimney that probably leads to a restroom. The place is scarcely decorated, but it's warm enough for Gladion to remove his coat and for Moon to hang hers. He can't imagine how cold she has to be now, considering she's been dunked into ice-cold water and Gladion threw her into the snow to avoid a giant snowball.

Their lives are a constant flip of good things and bad things coming their way, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

Moon points at the door by the chimney. "I'm gonna dry off, if you don't mind. I hope these people are decent enough to have towels. And maybe one of those fluffy bathrobes we used in the hot springs at Dawn Square Market."

"This isn't a resort, Moon. We are stranded in the middle of nowhere, and this place was built by _pirates_."

She nods appreciatively. "Then some cheap alcohol will help. Make some fire and _don't_ burn this place down."

They exchange a pair of thumbs-up before she retreats to the other room. As enticing as the thought of a silly drunk Moon would be, he can't even begin to imagine how she would behave if she were drunk, much less _himself_. He imagines that in his current state of weakness for her, he would be a little more touchy than usual and she would be more brazen and harsh than usual.

Moon has a free spirit and a very independent, erratic behavior. Maybe that would change if she were drunk; Ilima has mentioned that she's incredibly lightweight, but Gladion had forgotten to ask about that at the time.

Much to his surprise, she doesn't come back with booze, but with a towel patting down her hair. Some of the stands are sticking to her damp cheeks. The fire he's managed to set up brings sparks to her eyes.

She plops down right by his side, the towel hanging loose on her shoulder as she crawls close to the flames. The sheer, genuine excitement she feels over the fire is immediately replaced by a snarky smirk of defiance. "Look at you, making fires like these. You've grown into a useful man of society, Gladbag."

Gladion backhands her shoulder and snatches the towel from her shoulder. "You're welcome, ungrateful monster."

With a content and evil puff of laughter, she swings her eyes in his direction again, and much to his surprise, she crawls close to him. Whenever she has anything to say about his appearance or simply wants to get a rise out of him, she simply gets close to him and stares at him with those opaque, gray and mesmerizing eyes of hers, blue in some places, dark in others, much like a galaxy in full bloom.

This time, though, he knows more than to let her win, and a small smirk curls his lips through the faint pink that splashes on his cheeks. "Looking for your gratitude? I think you left that in the snow outside."

Her eyes decidedly stare into his like a tiger, swallowing the bait yet not falling for it. Moon might have the face and complexion of a doll but she's terribly dangerous to his heart when she looks at him like that.

And it gets even worse when she brings her hand to his fringe and combs her digits through the bangs. Her nails brush on his forehead as she reveals his other eye to the light, and curls her lips in thought, yet he can see amusement in her spirit. "Your fringe looks weird when it's wet. You look like a fluffy bird."

Moon finishes her statement with a snort that gets a grunt out of him, so he throws the towel in her direction and stalks to the bathroom to fix that. Gladion is entirely sure she does all of this because 'he makes a very funny face when he's embarrassed' and it's getting increasingly hard to remember that they are supposed to be rivals when all they do is poke on each other's sides to get a gasp out of the other, with some quips sandwiched in between.

Not to mention that he's a little too attentive of her in ways too sensitive to be considered platonic. Something he still has to come to terms with.

He washes his face thoroughly with cold water, squeezes his bangs dry, and exits the restroom.

He finds her sitting by the fire with a blanket over her shoulders, which he realizes is their stupidly ugly magenta blanket full of rhinestones. Knowing that she's rummaged through his bag to grab it, he expects her to be reading the book she's been teasing him mercilessly about, but he's instead met with a piece of paper in her hands.

" _You can ask her later, if you're so interested."_

"Hey."

His soft calling brings her attention away from the letter and to Gladion, who slides under their blanket like it's second nature. He attempts to get a sneak peek of the contents of the letter, but the calligraphy is near impossible to read. Moon sighs and bends the letter inwards, giving him a coy smirk. "Somebody's getting nosy."

"I know I didn't ask, but you still didn't tell me why Guzma has been helping you with… whatever business you have going on, which you still haven't told me about." A breathy chuckle swells her chest, and he smirks in appreciation. "Never knew you had it in you to hide things from us."

"Somebody's developing a sass and I have to sit you and Lillie down to talk about this. It's spreading like an illness."

His smirk quickly develops a frown, growing serious. "Really, what's going on between you and Guzma? Are you finally going to join the Blackring? I'm surprised you haven't already."

"You just wanna get rid of me because I'm calling you out on your edge. For good reason, mind you." He nudges her with his shoulder, urging her to take him seriously, and much to his surprise, she complies, sighing. "Okay, what do you exactly wanna know?"

"Why did you ask for Guzma's help? I guess this has to do with the time you spent in Bakiria, right?"

He must have asked the wrong question, because Moon grimaces as though she's in trouble, making him ten times more suspicious. "So… you know why I went to Bakiria, right?"

"You were there to refill the Talismans, right?" Moon nods, lips pursed like she's hiding something from him. "Did anything happen there?"

"Uh… no, it didn't, but things kinda changed a little while I was there."

Moon looks at him as if expecting him to put the pieces together with what little information she's given him. So far, it seems like something _terrible_ has happened and she's hiding it from him; or, she's done something terrible against that fateful promise she made to him.

Gladion trusts her enough to know this can't be it, so his eyes narrow in concern. "Again, did anything happen? You're giving me this look that tells me I'm not going to like any of this."

And she rushes to explain this, conflicted but decisive. "That's not it! If it reassures you, Lillie and Hau kinda _sorta_ know this already, but you weren't with us that day and I never found a day to tell you, so…" A pause stretches itself between them, so he counts the seconds and waits. "When we go back to Zeffarei, I… I'm gonna leave again. To Bakiria."

His eyes widen and her expression deflates with a sigh, seemingly as bummed out about this as him; however, she keeps looking at him like she's more worried about his reaction than anything else.

"I– elaborate on that, please?"

Moon nods. "I know I told you my mission was over, and it _was_ until a while ago." Her fingers drum on her lap as she speaks. "The Blackring reached out to me while I was in Bakiria when I stayed at one of their bases there, and they were like 'yo, we found this medallion on the coast, it's super weird, you gotta check it out'."

"Arceus, your imitations are just as bad as ever."

Moon lightly backhands his chest in retaliation. "As I was saying before you rudely interrupted, I left it in a… friend of mine's hands while I went around Bakiria. I was kinda suspicious about the medallion appearing outta nowhere, but after some time, the Talismans were refilled and I handed them to their owners before going back to Zeffarei because I _kinda_ wanted to see you all."

Her honesty baffles him, but he doesn't hesitate to make the best out of it, leaning a little close to smirk at her in pride. "Did someone get homesick?"

She smugly stares at him. "I was trying to be sweet and all that sappy stuff, but whatever sails your boat, Gladbug."

Gladion's hand rises to her cheek, and he tugs on it in revenge. "You still didn't answer my question, you know."

When he lets go, only soft bitterness and faux annoyance remain. Her smile is sincere, albeit a little sultry. She boops his nose with her index finger, eyes playful, and she doesn't answer him; the look in her eyes is enough for him. If it weren't for the many letters they have written each other with empty threats and hidden desires to spar and fight like they used to – a mere excuse to see each other, he knows that now – maybe he would hesitate.

When the moment slowly fades, she purses her lips again and bites her lip. "As I was saying, I thought the mission was over, but then this friend of mine wrote me a letter telling me that the Talisman was… corrupted with dark chi, which is weird because there's none of that raw dark chi in Bakiria, so she assumed it had to come from somewhere else."

"Maybe Bleakdross?"

Moon shakes her head. Her eyes become a little more distant. "No. She… has the hypothesis it could be from Cyrus."

His world comes to a halt altogether when all the ramifications sink in like the claws of a lion. Not only is Moon going to leave again, but if his intuition is correct, she will leave because Cyrus could pop up from any corner again and wreck things up again. That's fantastic. Nothing like the fodder of your trauma coming back again and having the subject of his affections try to put all of that on her shoulders.

"And you didn't tell me?" His voice edges close to indignant, worry, and edge merging into one, though he knows he has no right to behave like this. "Moon, you should have told us about this. There's no way I'm going to let you–"

Moon places two fingers over his lips. He swears they linger there _just_ a fraction. Her eyes are warm and soft under his. "You look _very_ ugly when you get angry. Listen to me first, please?"

It's uncanny for Moon to say _please_ , and with a touch of her index on his eyebrows, he calms down, sighing gravelly and tired, but her smile makes it all a little better.

A little laugh shakes her body, breathy. "I asked Guzma for help to look for Cyrus' presence in Bakiria, and, surprise, they haven't found a thing; no portals, no dead dark genius, no psychopaths– I mean, they found a few Ivoreed grunts, but nothing too alarming that _I_ didn't see."

Her words feel don't feel like the slap he was expecting, but rather a hand on his back, patting all the anxiety away. The prospect of such a foe coming back and for _revenge_ always brings a shudder down his spine whenever it's brought up to him, and Gladion simply _can't_ live through all the pain he subjected on both him and his loved ones; the thought of _Moon_ going against him had nearly sent him into a cardiac arrest.

"Then… they didn't find him anywhere?"

His expression must be funny to watch, for she chuckles and shakes her head. "Nope."

He allows himself to breathe. "So… you asked Guzma to help you track him down? Why are you going back, then?"

"Well… I still need to finish some business there. There's somebody I gotta see, and I wanna check on Bakiria one last time before I officially go back to Zeffarei." Moon chuckles to herself. "Besides, I still haven't found the Pokétta stone! What sort of treasure hunter would I be if I come back empty-handed?"

"You know that stone is just a legend, right?"

"A legend backed up by _lots_ of books, yeah." He makes a face and she giggles happily, draping the blanket a little further over her back. "I gotta find that stone. Guzma's been giving me some tips about that too, but his men are… not the brightest, like you said earlier."

"Do I need to remind you that you almost got killed by a rolling snowball earlier?"

Moon's eyes flicker in annoyance, and she grabs a little lock of his hair and tugs down at it. The way she laughs fans over his chin because only now does he realize that they are sitting _very_ close. "Are you ever gonna stop holding my failures over my head? You're so annoying."

As much as he doesn't enjoy being called annoying, he would trade a whole day of her calling him that if it meant she would stay. "I guess I won't."

Moon smiles like that's fine, like she wouldn't mind him reminding her of her failures if that meant staying with him, like this. Her shoulder is pressed against his and her voice is warm like the sun in spring, and while he doesn't mind writing her letters, they have been making so much progress and they have grown so… _close_. Gladion deems it to be unfair that she will leave.

It's not like she _has_ to leave, but she has chosen to. He's always known about her obsession with that stone, and many treasure hunters he's encountered in Bakiria have told him that's a legendary achievement that any treasure hunter aims at. Her desires have always been far beyond the sky and the stars, to where she can't reach, but he knows that if it's her who will be chasing after her dreams, then she will make them true.

Her voice dissolves into a hum of bliss, of appreciation, her body leaning against his a little further. "I know you're gonna miss my brilliant charisma and my lovely voice, but…" her sentence hangs undone, as if she doesn't know how to continue. Then, she sighs, eyes becoming gentle under his green ones. "I'll try to come back faster. I wouldn't wanna miss the coronation of the future Emperor."

Ah, that's the perfect topic for her to dismiss her issues but bring the focus on him; and he doesn't want it. "That coronation is still up to debate."

"But you'll become the Emperor one day, and I wouldn't wanna be traveling when it happens. I… wanna be there by your side." She brings her knees under her chin, voice slightly meek. "I'm gonna miss you."

His heart nearly combusts, but he's thankful for the storm raging outside that drowns out the frenetic pace of his heartbeat. Gladion swallows, looking at her even when she's not looking at him. "I will miss you, too, even if you're infuriatingly annoying."

Her legs uncurl from under her head to give space for a smirk, and she stares up at him with the defiance of a small puppy facing a lion. "You make no sense sometimes, Gladion."

Slowly, his hand reaches for her part of the blanket to tug it further over her, and the momentum pushes her against him until her head is nestled on the crook of his neck, sighing as he covers her with the eyesore of a blanket. Her hair tickles his chin and the soft scent of mint and _something else_ fills his nose pleasantly. Her frame might be cold, but he feels warm nonetheless.

His cheek is pressed against the crown of her head, one arm curling around her waist to push her between his legs and cage her in. They are so close that the blanket covers them both with no issue. "So… Lillie and Hau also know you're leaving, right?"

"Yeah."

"You told them before you told me?"

A small lapse of silence fills the space, but it's not uncomfortable; it's obvious she's thinking about what to say next, and his attention is caught simply by the way her breath catches and she stills in his hold. Her lips move against his shoulder as she speaks, hesitant.

"I… it's just a little hard." Her hand creeps to his chest. "I don't mind leaving, and I know you guys are gonna be fine, but I've had lots of fun with you and I don't want it to be over."

He doesn't know if she means _you_ as in _him_ or you as in _everyone_ , but she might have left it vague on purpose so he also stays quiet on purpose. Moon's words bring a certain sense of nostalgia to him: he doesn't want any of this to be over, either, and if it were for him, he would spend the next years traveling with his sister and friends for all eternity.

But he also knows he likes having a home to return to and a place to sleep in, and that while Moon's ambitions and his dreams of having a family and a home pull them in different directions, they will always find a way to make it back to each other.

So, that night, when they sleep on separate beds, the space beside him feels empty and cold. The beds aren't big enough to mathematically fit two people, and he deems that to be a terrible metaphor of who he is, of who Moon is.

Gladion doesn't want her to leave, and if he were to be selfish, he would tell her to stay.

"Gladion?" Her voice is hard to hear amidst the winds outside.

He curls under the blankets. That might fill in the space. "Hm?"

"Are… you cold?"

"No, why?" That's a lie. And a quick one at that.

"I'm just… it's a little cold. With the snowstorm outside, the hail and all that. Not that I'm like, _that_ cold, I'm a big girl, I'm fine." Moon's voice cuts through the darkness and illuminates his expression at the meaningful longing in her words. "I… ugh, forget it."

But it's too late, because he's already crawled out of his relatively warm bed, crossed the space between hers and his, and he's sneaked under the covers of her bed with a grunt. She tenses in his arms as he instinctively curls them around her frame, as though she's surprised.

"I– I never said I wanted to–"

"I know." Arceus, she's _so_ warm to snuggle into. "But we will, uh, sleep warmer if we sleep like this, right?"

Moon's body shakes with a quiet laugh, and she turns to face him. "Considering you're colder than ice, I don't know how practical this is."

He grits his teeth and pulls her impossibly closer. "And that's what I'm trying to remediate. Don't act like you don't enjoy it. We have done this before."

She hums into his chest. "If we're gonna be practical about things, then…" One hand on his chest and another curled around his back, she snakes out of his embrace and pushes him downwards, deeper into the blankets until his head is nestled in her chest instead. His cheeks _burn_ , but she giggles and combs through the hair up his scalp. "Warmer now, right? Your intolerance to _any_ temperature is the funniest shit ever."

He begrudgingly nuzzles the surface of her bust with his cheek, appearing forced but in reality feeling warmer and calmer than ever in his life. His arms remain around her, making sure she won't leave him to freeze. "Not my fault you're immune to _the whole world_."

Arceus, the faint echo of her heartbeat is the most tranquilizing sound he's ever heard. A little smile curls its way into his expression as she hums again, distractedly combing through his hair while his hands commit the feeling of her skin under his cheek to memory. "I've been in places much colder than these. But it's okay if you haven't, because I'm here."

A little groan escapes his throat. "But you will leave later."

"We still gotta go to the festival in the Emissary's Factory. We gotta pay Nanu a visit." Her lips move against his head. He wouldn't mind feeling that for approximately _all his life_. "And then I'll be around for a few days. And I'll come back soon."

"Promise?"

Gladion hears her gasp when he, clearly groggy and lacking any inhibitions, lifts his hand with a pinky stretched. A sound resembling a choked giggle echoes in her chest, and her warm pinky wraps around his. "My, you're getting used to the pinky promises, aren't you?"

"It… gives me the certainty you will be back." His arm curls around her waist tighter. "I will be waiting for you."

Moon brings a hand to her mouth, leaving his hair. "You're so cute when you're sleepy."

All response he can give her is a flustered growl and his other arm clutching her to him, and her laughter that follows is quickly drowned by a yawn, and then, the even pace of her breathing.

Happiness is snuggling in bed in Moon's arms while a blazing storm threatens to shatter the windows and bring the house down; and maybe, happiness is knowing that they are safe with each other and that this is the exact missing piece he's been looking for all along.

The whole world has already experienced his wrath, his rage like that of a monster.

But when it comes to her, he's the weakest and softest man to ever exist. No pride, no judges, no walls, no fangs, _nothing_.

And, in the end, he decides that he's entirely okay with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> /grabs hammer
> 
> /hits the ground  
> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA :) AAAAAAAAAA
> 
> Gladion and MOON ARE FUCKING CUDDLING. THEY. THEY ARE CUDDLING. FOR THE SECOND TIME. GLADION'S HEAD IN HER CHEST. HE'S VERY COZY. PAMPERED BY MOON. SNUGGLED IN A SMALL BED. PINKY PROMISE. MOON LEAVING AGAIN :( 
> 
> Yall shouldn't have forgotten about the very important rule of "Moon leaves at the end of each arc and we must suffer about it" though this arc was very different so maybe something will happen :DD THE TWO NEXT CHAPTERS ARE THE BEST ONES BY FAR AAHAHAHAHAHA
> 
> only three chapters left MY DUDE AAAAAAAAAA
> 
> "And… I got somebody that I can't let down, y'know. She wouldn't have liked me rejecting a kid that helped me out. I don't think that whatever that brat's after is that special, but Plums would have beat my ass if I said no. I kinda wanna be a lil' less mighty." - Guzma character development, still mourning Plumeria, R.I.P :(
> 
> "Gladion wraps his arms around her and tackles her to the ground while his name leaves her lips in a choked gasp. / The massive snowball rolls downhill a few feet away from them and then crashes with the barricade of the Shipyard with a spectacular crack. Moon is safe under him, her hands trapped between them, and Gladion can hear the staccato of her breathing right on his neck." :) sexual tension + a pinch of danger
> 
> I'm not even gonna comment ont he rest because I'M LITERALLY SO FUCKING DONE WITH THESE TWO DANCING AROUND THEIR FEELINGS. FUCKING MAKE OUT ALREADY AND GET MARRIED >:( I'VE BEEN DEALING WITH YOUR SHIT FOR NEARLY 80 CHAPTERS. PLEASE. FUCK YOUR STUFF OUT IM LEAVING
> 
> Lona is at the tipping point of canonicity :) I wonder what's gonna happen next chapter AHAHAHAHA


	18. Like The Books Say

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion finally finds out what he's been missing all along.

"Man, I can't believe you managed to bring _another_ person along– and that person is the darn _Empress_." Nanu chuckles, hands in his pockets as he observes his visitors from the comfortable seat behind his desk. "You look a lil' rougher, though. It's cute."

The little friend Nanu refers to is Lillie, who nods with a polite smile as she offers her hand to Nanu. "It's nice to meet you, finally. I have been told a lot about you."

She says a _lot_ because nobody has told her anything specifically good about him; he's a laid-back, calm, and slightly irresponsible man leading a whole village that, per Kukui's words in the past, has never bothered to come to visit them sometime. Nanu, still in his sandals and casual black wear, is as timeless as any of the Saint Riftwalkers, sans he's a little more aloof and more intimidating.

"I got a letter from that guy at the Dawn Square Market saying that you'd be coming and all that because of our little festival. I thought you'd never get here because of that nasty storm. That was bad."

Moon hums, drumming her fingers on the arm of the chair she's sitting against. "No big storm is gonna stop us from joining a party with free food." A cheeky grin fills her cheeks. "Hau said that last part but it still kinda applies. I don't mind free food either."

"As long as you don't bake it and make a mess of my kitchen again, we're cool." Lillie makes a questioning face at the three, and Hau promises her to explain later even when Gladion tries to dissuade him from doing so. Nanu smirks. "That girl doesn't know about that story? She's missing out."

Gladion clears his throat. "Lillie is actually my sister."

Nanu's eyes dart between Lillie and Gladion and he _really_ has to be blind to be missing the point. After a long moment, he whistles. "Cripes, that's coincidental. Never thought a kid like you would be the sibling of royalty."

Moon arches an eyebrow. "You've never cared about royalty."

"And I still don't, but it's kinda funny, heh." Gladion doesn't precisely find it funny after all they have gone through, but he _supposes_ it's a little ironic. "How come you're all here anyway? Do you really wanna attend that sort of party again?"

Hau bends his arms under his head. "That party was great! It's been a while since we've been to once of those dancy-dancy festivities!" Much to everyone's embarrassment, Hau begins to imitate that sort of dance, twirling to illustrate his point. "There's gonna be lotsa' food too, right? I'd die for those malasadas that the baker here makes. They're _delicious_!"

"Well, no idea if he's gonna bake anything, and there's no _way_ I'm letting you kids touch my kitchen again, but we'll figure something out. When I told everyone that you were coming, they got all excited and stuff. No clue why."

"We kicked an evil mastermind's ass back to the Dark Realm and all that." Moon chuckles with very fake airs of superiority that fit her like a glove. "You should be on your knees begging us to come to your party."

Gladion snickers. "You didn't say that when you and Lillie insisted on going a while ago."

"I didn't _insist_ , I asked nicely." A short silence. "Well, not nicely, because we had to come anyway and I would've gotten violent if you all denied us. Lillie's super excited about these 'humble common people celebrations', like she calls them."

"Dude, you know we wouldn't have denied you two a thing. Like, Lillie's my girlfriend and Moon's one of my best pals." Hau throws Gladion a suggestive glance that the blond catches with terrible dexterity. "And she's your sister. And Moon's your super duper good friend, eh?"

Moon turns right in time to witness Gladion smacking Hau on the head to prevent him from saying anything else, and any questions she had die in her mouth. She turns back to Nanu, who is watching the show with surprise and interest. "Yeah, Hau is Lillie's man. I know. Shocking."

Lillie offers him an apologetic smile, blushing like she does whenever _anyone_ brings up their relationship. "He doesn't truly know us, so it can be rather surprising."

Gladion wonders if Nanu will ever refer to Lillie as any sort of authority: Ilima uses Lady, Moon sometimes uses ma'am to be petty, and Nanu chooses something else entirely. "You two came holding hands, girl. I know what a couple looks like. I'm not _that_ dumb."

Hau snickers. "I know of a few people that are _that_ dumb–"

Gladion tackles Hau to the ground to prevent him from speaking any further. Moon turns around on her chair, twisting her back. "You two, we're trying to talk here. Don't pay your sister complex with poor Hau, Gladbug."

"Man, you three are still as much of a headache as I remember," groans Nanu, leaning back on his chair. "I guess it's good that you're holding up. It's important to keep your friends around. Don't follow this old man's example."

"We don't mean to inconvenience you, I apologize on their behalf," sighs Lillie, though she smiles and acts like everything is okay. "We are all very excited about tonight. We might not have the fanciest of dresses, but I hope we blend in with the citizens just fine. We don't mean to cause an uproar, let alone have people notice my presence."

Nanu's eyes widen at Lillie's display of politeness. "I mean, darn, you do have that woman's etiquette. Though Lusamine was a little harsher. I heard you got some badass powers, so I expected you to be more like Moon and less like Hau." His lips curl. "Good to know Zeffarei is in good hands. It surely is much better than whatever would happen with the Chaotic Trio over here."

Moon's response is a hiss. "We'd be pretty damn good Emperors, especially Gladbag over here."

Her praise doesn't come as a surprise, but her earnest tone _does_ stun him for a small moment. He folds his arms, deciding not to comment on that. Nanu snickers. "Whatever. The Realm will be fine with you three around. But let's not talk about all that serious stuff. You kids are here to have fun, right?"

Gladion narrows his eyes sternly. " _No alcohol_ for any of them– especially Hau. He almost got a concussion last time he got drunk."

Moon cranes her head to look at him. "Aw, don't be a wet blanket. If Lillie's gonna experience the true, raw life of an adventurer, then she's gotta try alcohol, at least. I doubt Lusamine ever let her even take a sip of wine."

The sorceress shakes her head. "Mother didn't let me touch alcohol, no. She always insisted on my purity as the next Grand Enchantress and Empress, and that I couldn't give in to such vices."

Hau loops an arm around her waist, gluing her to his side. She squeaks a little, biting her lip with a smile. "Don't worry, babe, I'll help you out. I can kinda tell you're gonna be a liquor kind of girl."

Gladion leans to talk to Moon in a whisper. "Am I just going to let him get my sister drunk?"

She purses her lips, then smiles. "Do you trust him?"

That alone answers the question, so he leans back and lets them talk while Nanu simply observes, one eyebrow crooked.

"I guess I'll tell my people to get some drinks going. Also, feel free to stay around here to sleep and all that; I think I'm legally obliged to host you four somewhere, so we can make it work out I guess." Nanu points at the staircase that runs to the second floor to their left. "Olivia came by the other day out of nowhere and made me refurbish another of my rooms."

"We can always stay in the hotel, too," suggests Gladion, finding himself to be very reasonable and simply very nice. He doesn't want to unnecessarily disturb the mayor. "They have very nice rooms there, and it's also cheap."

"Not gonna hold you back, kid, but it's the least I can offer to the Empress and her little annoying minions." Nanu shoots Gladion a look, as if he's thinking ahead of him. "Is it that you don't wanna share beds?"

Bright images of him sharing beds with Moon in each other's arms cross his mind like a flare. Gladion is sure his whole face heats up like a volcano, and standing behind her, he sees the tips of her ears grow rosy. The mayor certainly picks up on this like he had said those words _exactly_ to prove his private theory right, or simply to mess with them.

"Shoot, I guess it must be bad." He cackles to himself, much to the duo's bitter disgrace. "Do whatever you want, but please _don't_ walk into the kitchen. Believe it or not, I only got all the flour off my floor a few weeks ago. Letting any of you cook should be illegal."

Lillie has _many_ many questions about that in particular, but Moon has turned her seat and slammed her arms on the desk like she's about to unleash the biggest scoop in mankind's history.

"Didn't you hear?" Moon smirks, grinning. "We nearly burnt off the tongue of a nasty contest host."

Well, this is going to be a long story.

* * *

"So… Moon, eh?"

Standing right in front of the bonfire, Gladion turns with a snarl of dissatisfaction. "I don't like the tone of your voice."

"Dude, we gotta talk about this now that we're alone– and Lillie's gonna come back any second now, and trust me when I say that she's a _lot_ more enthusiastic about all this than me."

Gladion dedicates him only one second of his attention, then drinks from a cup with a drink he doesn't quite know, but he's sure it's not alcohol. If it were alcohol, Hau's persistence would be much more bearable, but he's been hogging him for _hours_ now and when the sorcerer caught him eyeing Moon from the distance, the questions had come like a tornado on full blast.

It's not like Gladion _purposefully_ looked at her. His eyes simply navigated to her whenever she would twirl into view. She's always liked dancing, and this time is no different; she might be a little more poised, but the charming radiance pulls him in like it always has.

So Hau keeps asking and Gladion keeps watching her, eyes unmoving. Sometimes, she would catch his gaze and throw him a wink, and others she would beckon at him to join her.

Hau pokes Gladion's cheek. "If you didn't look at her like _that_ then I'd believe you– but c'mon, you got a thing for her, don't you?"

"Why is _my_ love life of your interest? Everyone keeps asking me about it and it's getting _very_ tiring."

Far from fazed, Hau grins. "I guess it's _that_ obvious, then. You just got that twinkly look in your eyes, man. You spend about half the day frowning and sulking, so whenever you look at her the shift is like, _super_ obvious." Gladion growls, about to protest, but Hau shushes him with a bark of laughter. "Don't try to deny it, dude. I know what denial is like. We're good pals, you don't gotta lie to me."

And Hau waits. In all the time Gladion has known Hau, he's been the simpleton with a happy-go-lucky behavior and a handful of spells under his arm, only for him to prove himself to him over and over until Gladion is left to believe Hau is right, and that he can't expect to hide his attraction for Moon for much longer when she's so close, spinning in and out of sight and driving him to peculiar sighs and fixed gazes.

But Gladion knows that things aren't _that_ easy, that Moon will leave a little after they arrive at Zeffarei in a few days, and that whatever hopes he has of spending time with her will be reduced to longing letters that will express _nothing_ compared to what his heart desires.

Hau seems to see something in his face that Gladion takes ages to notice.

"She told ya', didn't she?" Gladion looks at him in askance. "That she's leavin'. She told us a while ago, y'know, and we thought she had told you about it but she told us yesterday that you know now, too. It's so weird."

Gladion squares his jaw, and takes a slow gulp from his cup. "Did you all _deliberately_ choose not to tell me?"

In Hau's laughter Gladion finds a smear of nervous guilt. "I mean… kinda? I thought you'd take it super bad, and I didn't wanna upset you. I think Moon didn't tell you either 'cause of that, but I got no clue as to why she waited for this long." Hau's eyes move to the bonfire. Lillie appears, dancing around with Moon, and then they disappear. "Lillie took the news kinda badly, and I guessed you'd be even worse because… _eh_. You know what I mean."

"I don't," comments Gladion, chuckling. "It's not like she will be gone for years. She will be back in no time at all."

That sounds much more like self-assurance rather than a solid argument, but Hau seemingly lets it slide. "It's still gonna take her a while, and considerin' how much bonding you two have done over the weeks, it's kinda obvious you were gonna be upset about her leaving."

"I'm _not_ upset."

"Damn, then you must be in a terrible mood today, 'cause your face just got about ten times moodier in, what? Ten seconds? That's a record, even for you."

"Moon's sass is rubbing off on you and that's _appalling_."

"Don't try to change the conversation!" Hau places his glass on the table behind him, folding his arms. "Listen, I know it looks much, _much_ easier to just stand back and pretend like it's fine to just let her go, y'know. And not gonna lie, that's also fine and nothing's gonna go wrong if you just let her run off to Bakiria and do her stuff. We know she's gonna be just fine, so it's not like we won't be seeing her again."

Gladion finds such a preface to be weird to introduce what looks like an argument. A dialogue. A chat. "And what's your point? She will be leaving soon." A sigh stumbles out of his throat, gravelly and tired. "I can't make her stay, and I _won't_ make her stay."

"It's not like anybody, be human or a god, can make her change her mind about these things. But… _dude_. Moon's gonna leave again, and yeah, she's gonna be fine, but who knows when she's gonna come back? She'll be gone in no time. She's leaving, man."

"I think you got that point across already," Gladion sourly comments. He sheds a small puff of unsmiling laughter as Hau's expression wrinkles in distaste.

"And you're supposed to be the clever one of us and _get_ my point." Hau points a hand at the bonfire. "Are you just gonna stand by and let her get away without coming clean?" Gladion opens his mouth, and Hau shakes his head. "Don't you even _dare_ tell me you got no feelings for her, dude. You're whipped for her, ain't you?"

He knows he needs no answer to that question. Gladion's eyes, rarely leaving the fire, are blazing with a desire to see her. His fixation is so obvious he could as well draw hearts all over his face and hope that will captivate the idea for her to see. He knows he can't expect her to catch his drift from so far away, but…

"My… feelings for her don't matter." Gladion mumbles, clearly troubled, and Hau's eyes widen like he's seen life for the first time. "She will leave, and who knows how much could change during that time."

Hau's previously decided visage melts into goo and understanding, and the sorcerer wraps an arm around his friend's shoulder. The latter does nothing to pull away from the hug.

"Yeah, she's gonna leave, but that doesn't mean you gotta stay quiet and just let her go, dude. After all that's happened, you two deserve an ounce of love at least, and denying yourself that ain't good for the heart." His hand pats Gladion on the arm. "I used to be that way with Lillie, like, a long long time ago when I just didn't know what to do with myself, either."

Gladion snorts. "Have you _ever_ known what to do with yourself?"

Hau smiles just as humorously, but he's a pinch more genuine about it. "I mean it, dude. I was super caught up with myself to realize I had Lillie _right_ in front of me." Hau turns his eyes to the sky, smiling. Gladion can see Lillie in his eyes and mind when Hau smiles like _that_. "I thought she wouldn't wanna hang out with some coward that has no memories of his past. I knew she'd never be like that, but I didn't wanna admit to myself that I could _grow_ up and just stop being a kid. It was easier to just cower and expect nothing, 'cause I wasn't gonna do anything to chase after her, either."

Gladion listens to him intently, eyes perched on the sorcerer in keen interest. Hau speaks with a fond yet insecure voice like this is a touchy subject to discuss, so Gladion decides to be equally as tactful and remain silent.

Then, Hau sighs. "But Lillie's just that girl that accepts and forgives anyone, y'know. There ain't nothing about me to forgive, but when Moon… uh, _disappeared_ , I felt like the most useless shit in existence."

"None of what happened was your fault."

"And it wasn't yours either, but you also beat yourself up over it, didn't you?"

Gladion sows his lips shut.

Hau chuckles, eyes closing to take in the chilly but warming winter air. "I didn't wanna give Lillie even a thought. I didn't think I deserved someone as good as her, but knowing her better made me realize that I'm not that bad. That I deserved getting that sort of shot at love. She made me feel _that_ way, like I could fly, and that I could protect the people I cared about as long as she was by my side. Man, I adore her."

The swordsman lets out a fond laugh. "That much we have known for a while. Even before you and her started dating."

"But I wasn't ready to date her then! I didn't think I could ever get somebody as cool and cute and just _great_ as her, but she's got her stuff to deal with, too. Getting together kinda opens the doors to the good and the bad stuff, but she's doing alright and I'm so _proud_ of her– but I digress." Hau turns to put his hands on Gladion's shoulders, giving him a wide smile. "I got Lillie now. And I could've stayed silent and just swallowed my fear but I _didn't_ , and you gotta do the same."

"Hau, we– Moon–" He rubs a hand over his face. "Look, it sounds very cute and fun to imagine your friends together, I know that, but things are not that easy. While she's out doing her business, I'll be in Zeffarei doing mine. These feelings will fade."

"Do you _really_ think that?"

No. "Yeah."

"So you're telling me that the girl you're head over heels for, somebody you've been friends with for _ages_ , is just _that_ easy to forget?" Hau shakes his head. "You ain't gonna fool me, dude."

"I don't have to fool you. Things would be too complicated if we ever got together– which we won't, because there's no way she feels the same way I do, and she doesn't like romance either, so–"

"Gladbag, dude, you calling Moon ignorant is the most ironic shit I've ever heard." Gladion has no time to complain, for Hau shushes him again. "Be honest with me; do you really think you're just gonna up and forget about her like that? Do you _really_ think she's gonna stop sending you letters, or that you're gonna stop being the way you are because some weeks, months or _whatever_ have passed?"

No.

No, of course he doesn't. One of Moon's great traits is that she's timeless and she will always treat him as a friend, a rival, and sometimes _something else_ no matter the situation they are in. He can't hope to stay away from her for much longer.

Gladion turns his head to the side. "What am I supposed to do, then? Just go to her face and tell her that I don't want her to go? That I will miss her like crazy and that I just want her to _stay_?"

"Dude, you don't gotta hold her back. You don't wanna do that anyway– but you gotta get your point across." The blond's eyes widen as Hau grins. "She's gonna leave soon, you got her _right_ in front of you. Telling yourself you don't feel a thing and expect the feelings to disappear is gonna leave you alone, man, and I don't wanna see you suffer just because you're scared."

Gladion likes to consider himself brave, among other things, but bravery is one of his traits he likes the most. However, Moon is a completely different foe that is not that easy to shake off, be it in his mind or on the battlefield. She brings feelings that he's never felt before, feelings that make him want to run away, but also get close, be with her, and enjoy her presence as much as she seems to enjoy his.

Gladion is a brave man, but he's suddenly scared _shitless_ of what all these feelings entail. Of the many things he has to do, of the many things he wants Moon to see, of the many things he wants to be.

But not giving her an honest answer is as deceitful as saying he has no feelings for her.

And telling himself that he's still too low for his standards is too true to keep using it as a weapon against himself and _her_ anymore.

Gladion's eyes flicker to Moon, who merrily laughs as she dances and takes Lillie's hands, leading her around the bonfire.

Hau catches his eyes and smiles. "You two have gone through hell and back together. I've never seen a pair of idiots that hate but _adore_ each other as much as you do. It's kinda amazing, not gonna lie." The sorcerer chuckles. "But life ain't about fighting all the time, gettin' hurt and being sad. You can't expect to be like a stone all your life, dude; not everything is about winning or losing. It's also about finding somebody who can just be there and cherish you, man."

Inside Gladion's head, there is a little Faba-shaped demon shrieking in his ear to not believe him, that a man like him will never deserve love when he's let his friends down so many times; but Hau's warmth, his compassionate eyes– it all reminds him of the times he's gotten back to his feet, fought through fire to save his people, the growth he's experienced, the tender touches he can still remember, coming from _her_ , and only _her_.

They are like beacons of heavenly light, illuminating the path.

Gladion draws in a shaky breath, resolution filling his eyes. "I… I will go check on them. I feel a little restless."

Knowingly, Hau raises a balled fist, laughing. "Go get your girl, dude. Tell me the details later."

The swordsman bumps his fist with Hau's, gives him a nod, and dashes into the party with a smirk curling his lips into confidence, into hope, into glee.

It takes him no time at all to reach the pair. Moon and Lillie are easy to discern through the crowd of people in humble clothes, in brown dresses and unkempt shirts. Lillie's bright clothes stand out under the bright bonfire, and when he makes his way to them, they go out of their way to approach him as well.

Gladion, entertained, nods a greeting at them. "Looks like you two are having fun."

"Oh, _heaps_!" Lillie grins wide and bright; but there's something hidden behind her expression that Gladion can't quite see. "I was actually telling Moon to invite you over! Where did Hau go, anyway? He was here a second ago!"

"He tripped with someone for the umpteenth time, so he has called it a day." Gladion points a thumb behind him. "He's there. He has been going over and over about how pretty you look tonight."

Moon friendly slaps her friend's shoulder. "Look at you two, so cute and flirty." The assassin gives Lillie a gentle push out of the crowd. "Go talk to your cutie patootie while I keep watch over our pretentious edgelord of a friend we got."

Gladion nods with equal tease in his eyes. "Good to see you too, Moon. I'm surprised to see nobody has had their feet destroyed thanks to you."

When Moon takes a daring step towards him, smirk like that of a predator, Lillie shrieks and shuffles away towards Hau. Moon follows her with her eyes, expression softening as Hau greets her with a bear hug and spins her around.

When the show is over and Hau leads Lillie away, she focuses on Gladion again with a crooked smile. "I was wondering how long it would take you to drop by, mister."

"You could have come by to invite me like a normal person would."

Moon playfully taps his nose with her index, and he feels her other hand wrap around his arm. "Since when have we been normal people, Gladbug?"

When she lowers her touch from his face, she offers him a hand, presumably to lead him deeper into the dancing crowd so they can yet again indulge themselves into the crazy dancing and the bone-tingling feeling of freedom in irrationality– but, suddenly, the violins, guitars, bongos and other instruments die down abruptly, causing the whole rave to stop dancing.

Moon and Gladion look at the band just in time to see them nodding and starting to play something else– it's the compass for a slow, waltzing dance.

And Hau is standing right beside the band with a grin so wide and satisfied it's equal parts blinding and _very_ punchable.

Right in front of him, Moon blinks at the slowing tempo, her hands halted in mid-air at the change of atmosphere. Around them, people have begun to pick somebody to dance with, smiling sheepishly and hands being held while Gladion and Moon stare at each other, quite at a loss of what to say.

But, then, like a fairy giving him a torchlight, she offers him her hand. "Looks like we gotta dance again, _mon chéri_."

That accent is doing things to him, but even without it, he would have accepted anyway. With a smile that now comes a little easier, he takes her hand into his, his other arm curling around her waist to pull her closer. "I thought you would never ask."

"Well, I can't count on you to ask me to dance, can I?" she chuckles. Her whole being shakes in his arms. "I was hoping you would pull a fair maiden like me to the dancefloor."

"This barely classifies as a dancefloor, and you barely classify as a fair maiden."

"Oh, shush, you know what I mean." The tilted tease softens into goo, and all that's left in her eyes is a gentle, honest spark. "I was hoping I'd get to dance with you one last time, y'know. We'll get to Zeffarei in a few days and I doubt we'll have time to dance then."

He wants to stay positive and sincere and happy and soft but she makes it _so_ hard when she reminds him of that. Gladion bites back a sigh. "Since when do you enjoy dancing this much?"

"Didn't that blasphemy of a book you own tell you _that_ , exactly?"

"And you told me to take your word to heart, too." Gladion chuckles as her eyes grow several degrees wider. "I can't expect a book to tell me all about an Empire, right? Or… about you, for that matter."

If she catches the meaning behind that last bit is uncertain, but her eyes crinkle softly around the edges and, in response, she lets herself be pulled closer to where her head rests on his shoulder, smiling blissfully. "Mm… I guess you're right."

Dancing with her like this is all sorts of alluring. Someone as vast, infinite, and big as her being in his arms and dancing the night away feels like a dream, almost, but by the way she smiles into his shirt and he smiles into her hair, he knows full-well this is no dream. Never in his life would he have thought of _this_ (the tenderness, the soft smiles, her hands on his chest that make him believe they are alone, for a whole minute) would be as fulfilling and heart-clenching as it is. Her proximity and warmth are enough to make his heart burst, to make his cheeks blister and for his hands to twitch.

She reels all the jitters out of him like an expert fisherman and he lets her do so like the sucker he is. But for a touch as heavenly and a feeling this private and intimate as this, this is a low price. His hands memorize the curve of her waist, his eyes catch the color of her hair and the angle of her smile, and if he focuses enough, he can hear her sighing.

Gladion is dancing with his rival to a song meant for marriages, a song that would initiate friends into falling in love; and he's enjoying it as if he were starving for her touch, like a hermit hanging onto a fire in the middle of winter.

Her hands travel from his chest to the expanse of his back, flat and feeling.

"You're tense," she comments into his shirt. "What's up?"

Gladion, still holding her close, darts his eyes around, grimacing. "There's… a lot of people here. I don't mind dancing with you at all, I just don't enjoy all these people crammed in one space."

His admission of his pleasure to her presence comes easily, probably because she's smiling at him with very rare kindness and equally intense bliss. She lifts her head from his shoulder, darting her eyes around with several blinks. "It's a little crowded here, yeah. I guess that's the charm of festivals like these."

Gladion knows a solution to this, though; but it would mean taking a leap into oblivion and risking _everything_ they have built thus far. At least for him the deal is _that_ big, but when it comes to Moon, no deal is too big, so he sighs and tightens his grip on her waist.

If he looks close enough, if he _feels_ close enough, there is a certain tension to her posture as well. That gives him the last ounce of bravery he needs. "I, um, I know a place close to here, up the hill." Moon's head slowly turns to him again, processing the information with parting lips. "There shouldn't be too many people there."

Her eyes dart between the bonfire and him, teeth biting her lower lip until it's reddened. "What about the music, though?"

"We should hear it just fine from up there. We will just have more space to… dance. And stuff."

Arceus had really left him the moment he asked her to escape the party, robbing him of all his eloquence and leaving him broken and nervous, but Moon considers his words for no more than three seconds, after which she nods at him.

In an act of pure bravery and smooth moves that certainly are not _his_ , he maneuvers them through the crowd, never letting go of her as they waltz deeper into the crowd, then out of it and escaping through people to reach a small hill that overlooks the sea and the party. He twirls her in an act of even further bravery, at which she laughs contently, and when she's back in his arms, they have made it up the hill and her arms are looped around his neck, looking at him gently as he moves them with the same precision and intent from that night at Reikyuu.

Except that this time they are dancing alone on top of a hill, a single tree on top, with the moonlight washing over her face like a halo and a smile that he could get addicted to. She raises an eyebrow, knowing. "Never knew you had it in you to sweep a lady off her feet like this, Gladion."

Their bodies sway left and right, never missing each other's eyes as they speak. In this sacred intimacy, something he's grown to be fond of, he allows himself another smile. "It's easy to do when I'm with you."

"Be careful, Gladion, that almost flattered me."

"I was hoping it would," he states in all honesty, not missing out on the way she sighs a small laugh. "I think we're well over not being honest with one another, right? Especially since… you will be leaving soon."

A sad puff blows past her nose. "So… one last night before I leave, huh? I'm not gonna leave tomorrow either."

"I know, but… you will be gone for a while." His hands distractedly slide so his arms cage her in, nearly like a hug he knows he would never be able to escape from. "Things have gotten much better between us lately and..." he trails off, which might be for the best; he knows he doesn't want her to hear about his selfish desires, his wanton to pull her close and never let her go when he would have wanted her as far from him as possible in the past. "I never took you to that fancy dungeon either. There's still so much to do."

A small giggle – too sweet to be hers, but at the same time too genuine to be anyone else's – rocks her shoulders. "We can go there when I come back. Part of me wishes I could stay, but…" she doesn't finish her thoughts either. Instead, she chooses to bury her head in the crook of his neck.

They are no longer properly dancing; they are in an embrace, moving along to music they can no longer hear clearly.

"I'm gonna miss you," she whispers, warm and pleasant, but still nervous and a tad tense. "And I will send lots of letters, I promise."

Gladion is a man of control, and whenever Moon floats into his space and suggests spending time together doing something insane, as usual, she also snatches all control he has of himself. Letting go of his inhibitions isn't something he considers ideal, nor something he particularly enjoys because he needs to know what he's doing all the time. And whenever she touches him in any way, all of that evaporates and suddenly, his chest tightens and he wants to die but in a very _good way_.

He looks away from the sea and finds her to be studying him with gentle intention, cheek on his shoulder. The mischievous spark – always there, shining bright like the sun – is still there.

Words escape him.

"I wouldn't mind us being like this more often."

Moon hesitantly raises her head from his shoulder, blinking in confusion. "Like this?"

"Yeah," Gladion presses his forehead against hers, sighing. "Together."

Under his gentle gaze, her eyes widen like saucers, and he feels her hands tighten on his neck, fingers grazing his nape and making him shudder lightly. A little gulp follows his words, both down her throat and his, processing the heavy meaning of his words with silent, shy stares that never falter. Her black eyes remain fixed on his, captivated, shining, warm like sunlight and silent like the moon above them.

Her constant moving lips have gone quiet.

And with her silence, biting his tongue and holding his breath, Gladion lifts his hands from her waist to her cheeks, stroking the skin of her blistered cheekbones, and he guides her face forward to nudge his nose with hers slowly.

It takes two exact seconds for Moon to stammer out of her reverie. "Wh- _What_ –"

And he instantly clams up as well, but his voice is undeniably soft, gentle and whispered "I, uh, I read in that book that your people… used this to express, um, _stuff_ , right?"

Moon blinks at an absurd pace, lips sealed in a tight line; her eyes, however, express a much different feeling. He would dare say she's pleased. "Y-yeah. They used it to express–"

"... _Affection_ , right?"

Lips pursed, she nods, not quite sure what else to say, and he's not sure what to say either.

The Karee Empire has always had customs that differ from others, and Rowlet kisses are one of those traditions that vastly fascinated him. While people use that gesture very loosely outside the boundaries of what now is Bleakdross, the Karee Empire used it in very, _very_ intimate situations. Gladion hadn't actively thought about using it, but now, being this close to her and speaking in voices so slow and _tender_ , it had simply felt _right_.

But that doesn't mean _she_ has to see it that way, though. "Did… did it annoy you?"

Much softer than she would ever do, Moon shakes her head, clearly conflicted. "N-Not at all. I was just… surprised. It…" Moon gulps, biting her lip as she looks at him. "It was nice."

He takes the opportunity to bring her closer again, his thumbs tracing the top of her heart-shaped cheeks. "Can… Can I do it again, then?"

And when she nods, softly, resolute but very delicate, his heart swells within his chest and he rubs his nose against hers softly, noting how she closes her eyes and tightens her grip on his neck while his hands sink and twist the fabric behind her shirt. He's sure their lips are just a brush away, a touch away, a sigh away from touching, but he refrains from letting himself be led astray by that.

Gladion allows himself a little smirk. "You make a very funny face when I do this. You've gone all red."

"Obviously!" Arceus, he never thought he would hear Moon make a face that flustered, but this might be the best time for such an event. "People in my homeland used it in– in very exclusive situations. It's not something you go around doing to your friends and all that."

And now it's his time to be flustered, cheeks reddening and eyes darting away from hers.

Because he knows that very well, too.

"I… I know that."

Meaning drops on Moon like a slow waterfall, widening her eyes in surprise. He has managed to put so much meaning in one single sentence that she's speechless. She takes a very deep breath, releasing it with a tremor. "Oh, I… I thought you were just trying to mess with me. Like you usually do." A little chuckle escapes her lips, breathy. In their proximity, it fans across his lips. "Like we usually do."

Gladion gives her a very earnest look. His feet feel like moving, and his hands are undoubtedly beginning to sweat. Moon is small, thin, and delicate under his palms, but she's strong and a wall he can't seem to kick down no matter how many times he tries. This is where he will be packing all he has to break past the last standing wall between them.

This is when all his feelings, their bickering, his clamoring heartbeat and the soft smiles come into completion.

And like the reckless man he's grown to become, Gladion throws himself into the pool, eyes closed, but holding her close with intent. His brow pinches in concern, in honesty.

"I like messing with you, but… not in _that_ way. It's not what you deserve after all we have been through together." Her skin grows warm under his even warmer palms. Her lips part, inviting, soft and alluring, much like her sparkling and starlight-filled irises. He drinks her in like she's poison, and Moon looks at him like he's her antidote. "I… I'm terrible at these things, but… I'm not that bad when it comes to you. I'm a little better when you're around."

Moon's lips curl into a playful smile, and she's about to probably say something that will completely disturb his pace and his focus, so he places a single digit over her lips. If she speaks now, he will never pick it up again.

That same digit curls under her chin, tilting her head upwards so he can meet her eyes straight on, gazing at her with an intensity that could burn the sky to ashes. "I don't think I have ever been this close to anybody, but it feels right for it to be you. Hau is also a good friend and Lillie is my sister, but they are different. You're the same and also _not_ the same," Gladion fumbles with his words, but she looks at him like he makes perfect sense. "You're important to me. And I want to protect you as long as I live."

Her face shrinks in emotion, shoulders heaving, and one of her hands places itself on his chest. "I was– I was gonna say that." Her smile is pursed and guilty, eyes sparkling with _something_ that makes his stomach lurch in a very pleasant way. "That you're very important to me too. I also care about Lillie and Hau with my life, and they're special, too. It just never is the same when it's you. You're absurd and you… you make me feel weird, sometimes."

He arches an eyebrow. "Weird?"

"You make me feel… _better_ , and stronger, but not in the sense that I can punch down a tree, but in the sense that I can sleep knowing I won't fall again. It's safe. You're safe." Moon's other hand retreats from his neck to gently preen his locks out of his eye's way. "It's thanks to you that I'm not alone anymore, even if you were a pain at the beginning. You just make me feel safe."

And the next part is a whisper he barely hears, but when he catches it, he swears his heart bursts.

"You make me feel like I'm at home."

And that applies to her, too, because Hau and Lillie are home too, but they're not _that_ kind of home. They are home in the laughter and happiness, but Moon is his comfort, his friendly banter, his vigor, his light, his _wings_. She's like a star that threatens to blind him, but he's not known for holding back from shining twice as hard if needed.

She makes him better. She's beautiful. She's his home.

"I know the feeling," he murmurs, sighing gently. "I wasn't ever anyone before I met you. I was just a small boy in a small town with big dreams for a bag too little. I owe you and Hau all I have now." Her eyes widen. Gladion relishes in the way her body trembles under his hold. "I owe _you_ everything I have earned. I would be nowhere without you, Moon. You're… irreplaceable to me."

"I know," she says, nearly teasing, but then she's cupping his cheeks with delicacy and care, and he has no time to be angry because he melts into her touch. "I know. You're irreplaceable to me, too."

"... even if I'm a pretentious edgelord?"

"And even if you one day point your sword at me and defeat me in battle, you're still gonna be as important."

At this point, they have stopped dancing. Gladion isn't sure of where the band went, because he can't hear it anymore; his heartbeat and the echo of her voice in his mind, dazing his mind with a thin mist, is all he can hear. And he wouldn't mind staying like this for all eternity, drowning in everything that is her.

All he does is hold her, drinking from her words and her feelings as their noses brush, but don't quite nudge.

His lips curl into a soft smile, one he's realized that only _she_ will see. A rare smile he's created only for her to witness; a smile that takes her breath away.

"Even if you're an airhead, you still have me tangled in your net. I don't know how you did it, but I… I can't see you as an opponent anymore, and… I can't see you as a friend, either." His thumb carefully traces the shape of her lower lip; slow, wishing, _longing_. "We will always be rivals one way or another, but… I don't want us to be only that. I want to be so much more than that. Does that even make sense?"

Her response is a simple, small nod. "Yeah, I think it does." The smile Moon pulls up knocks all air out of him, and his lips part in wonder, in curiosity. "I– I kinda get it, because I think I feel the same way, too."

And with that, Gladion knows he can die as the happiest man in this Realm and the next.

Gladion carefully studies her like a treasure in a temple. Her features are content, no more excited than usual, but the veil of bliss over her expression tells him she's finally gotten something out of his chest, much like he just had, too. He's not sure what all of this entails, if all of _this_ can even have a name, because nothing in this world should exist to kill him and also revitalize his spirit at the same time.

Except that the very answer to this question is Moon; the constant answer to his prayers, the light shining through the darkness, a warm hand with the touch of a warrior and the heart of a hyperactive maniac that now looks at him so softly he could almost _melt_ under her touch.

His eyes flicker at her lips, soft and inviting. He traces the shape of her plump bottom one with uncanny delicacy, bright verdant eyes focused on them with an intent that only _hunger_ can conjure. They are soft, not too dry, and now that he knows how they feel to the touch, Gladion can't help but wonder how they would feel against his very own lips.

Noses brushing, foreheads touching and eyes lidded, he finds her eyes to be darting down to his lips, too, her arms coming to loop around his neck once more. "Moon?"

She exhales a shaky breath. "Yeah?"

And when he whispers his question, he does it with the lowest voice he can muster, like it will rain if the world hears him, "Can I kiss you?"

Her breath hitches in her throat, and whatever words she's about to whisper get lost in her memory, parted lips shutting close as she timidly nods, holding her breath.

His eyes fall close along with hers; gently, slowly, with the care of a gardener caressing a flower, he brushes his lips against hers; and his heart claps within his chest hard and fast, like the wings of a little bird finally fluttering to life after years of solitude.

A tiny noise escapes her lips, soft and wanting, and when Moon kisses him back, she does it with the same hidden passion and softness he gives her. Her grip on him tightens enough for him to know she wants this as much as he does, and one of his arms curls around her waist while his other hand caresses her cheek lovingly, sliding his lips against hers in leisure, with the sea behind them and the object of his eternal affections moving in his arms.

His name is a soft, breathless whisper against his lips; and when they part for a short take of air, she dives in just as eagerly as it had begun, setting a low flame at the pit of his belly with just one touch. Gladion has been wanting this touch for so long that when she joins their lips again with a smile, he can barely believe he's been alive without this insane woman in his arms.

Arceus, he _loves_ her.

And he loves the way she whispers his name even more; how she rakes her nails against his scalp tenderly when he whispers hers just as softly, indulging in the feeling of her body against his, of the way she gives his lower lip a little nibble that sends him into a long, faint groan that he never knew he could make. He gives hers a little nip in retaliation, and her body shudders under his hands, like an instrument being strung just right.

Just when he's about to explore a little further, giving that bottom lip of hers a teasing, longing touch with his tongue, she parts from him, breathless, pushed flush against him and holding onto his neck for dear life. The color on her cheeks is _lovely_.

Moon shows him a wobbly smirk. "For a guy as obsessed with self-preservation as you, you surely are shameless with these things, eh?"

His brow furrows, but the bite of a blush lingers. "Don't act like you didn't enjoy it." Any annoyance that could exist in his expression dies with the little giggle she provides him with; his hand cups his cheeks and puffs her lips out. "Your bruises have a lovely color, but your cheeks look even better when they're like this."

Moon shakes her head, smiling again, biting her lip with a suggestive smirk. "Maybe if you kiss me again, you will see them shine brighter."

And as Gladion leans in to meet her lips once more, all he can think about – other than her little moans, her little tugs, and her sinful tongue – is that the day she crashed with his wagon and made of his life a mess, she had made his life the best it could be, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DO THE DANCE  
> DO THE DANCE  
> DO THE DANCE WHERE GLADION AND MOON ARE CANON DO THE DANCEEEEEEEEE
> 
> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I'MS CREAMING THEY'RE FINALLY A THING YES YES IT'S TAKEN ME FUCKING 80 CHAPTERS BUT WE GOT THERE BOYS
> 
> oh my god I don't think I've ever been as proud of anything ever. This chapter is like PREMIUM FLUFF FOREVER. I'M SO PROUD THAT THIS JUST FEELS RIGHT and that these two dumbasses just CAN finally be romantic somehow and they kiss and it makes sense and the pacing is alright and I'M AT PEACE WITH THE WORLD FINALLY LONASHIPPING IS CANON HOLY SHITTT
> 
> but we'll see more on that next chapter. WE'RE FINALLY CANON AND LONASHIPPING IS FINALLY TOGETHER...... or are they? :)
> 
> more on that next chapter, there are 2 more chaps left LMAO
> 
> The Four Dumbass Squad: Nanu!!! long time no see!!!  
> Nanu, lighting a cigarette: god fucking damn it the kids are back
> 
> Hau giving Gladion The Talk. They've come so far. they're bros. my babies. I'm crying. I'm sobbing 
> 
> Gladion: Moon will leave again. I'm pissed about that because I'm gonna miss her and I refuse to have feelings for her because I'm scared and--  
> Hau: oh my dude. my guy. Gladion. You're whipped.  
> Gladion: I-  
> Hau: I'm a shipper shut UP
> 
> Lonashipping dancing gently and then talking alone about anything and everything and their feelings and the eskimo kiss THE ESKIMO KISS I CAN'T WITH THESE TWO THEY'RE SO FUCKING CHEESY WHEN THEY'RE ALONE
> 
> Moon and Gladion in public: headbutting for dominance  
> Moon and Gladion in private: I'm very soft for you god fucking damn it
> 
> I mean Gladion didn't say he loves her, he THOUGHT about it, and Moon didn't say it either because in these series we're all about subtlety and they are now the Typical Couple That Doesn't Say They Love Each Other because FUCKING LOOK AT THEM
> 
> and they kissed. so delicate. so slow. Moon is nervous, he's nervous, but god dammit they love each other AFTER FUCKING 80 CHAPTERS. LIKE 20 CHAPTERS OF THEM HATING EACH OTHER'S GUTS AND 60 CHAPTERS OF FRIENDSHIP AND SLOWBURN ROMANCE THEY'RE HERE NOW and it only gets better now :>
> 
> next chapter we're wrapping things up, and the epilogue is more of a treat so I'LL SEE YOU SOON, HAPPY LONASHIPPING


	19. Follow Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gladion follows Moon, meets his destiny, and years later, makes his future finally _his_.

"The weather sure is weird today." Moon holds up a hand, sighing. "Man, not even the sky wants to give me a proper send-off. What a joke."

"My, Ma'am, I see you aren't traveling as light now, are you?"

She sighs out again in response, taking a few more steps forward towards the pier. Her gray cape blows in the crisp wind of winter as she readjusts it over her shoulders, tucking her hair out with one hand. Her eyes instantly dart to the nice sailor that always carries her to Bakiria, a man she's gotten used to that never fails to offer her a little bit of talking while he gets the sails ready.

Moon looks at the sky idly afterward. The sun is beginning to peek from the hills behind them, but there are no clouds in the sky. Everything is washed in a pale pink color. She shifts her backpack on her shoulders, smiling. "I can't travel lightly today. Lillie's gotten very insistent about me carrying tons of food with me. I told her I can just fetch some apples from a tree but she just won't let me off that easily."

"The Empress truly is caring like none other. It's good to know some things haven't changed." Moon hums in agreement, looking at the ship before her on the river. "Feel free to leave anything here. I don't think I will be carrying any passengers while you are gone."

The assassin shakes her head. "It's fine. I know where I'm going now, so I'll be taking a few shortcuts this time. I don't wanna be held back because of some petty desert sandstorms, y'know. That would suck." She draws in a mighty breath, growing thoughtful for a second before rubbing the back of her head. "I'm gonna have to be a lil' careful this time. I met up with a pair of Sandile last time, can you believe it?"

"Sandile?"

Moon puts up her hands and claws them out, making a snarl. "They're these little crocodiles that live under the sand and all that. I never thought I'd meet up with one, but last time about a thousand of them cornered me. Only my mighty reflexes and speed got me outta there." She stretches her arms upwards, groaning faintly. "It got ugly. They have the sharpest teeth ever. They can even chop down an entire tree with a sole bite."

The sailor ducks behind the ship's railing, looking for something. "How do you know that?"

"One Sandile might or might not have ended up biting a tree. I needed wood and they were angry at me for no reason at all." That reason being her taking a little gem from their nest, but that's nothing to throw such a fuss about. She moans in distaste. "Some people get upset over the smallest of things."

"My, no wonder you want to be a little more careful this time then, Ma'am." After so much time living in Zeffarei, nobody is surprised to hear about her antics. "Your cautiousness is peculiar to hear about, though. What's the occasion?"

That question reels a smile out of her, more of a knowing smirk. "I can't spend time healing my wounds. That's just ridiculous. If I get any bones broken, I'll just walk it off and hurry. I got a little bit of a deadline in my hands." Moon sighs a fond chuckle. "I have somebody to come back to now."

While Moon and Gladion had _not_ established a deadline per se, she had agreed to come back as quickly as possible. They hadn't had any time to talk after, well, _all_ that happened that night at the festival. Truth be told, they don't have much to say that they don't know already, because their feelings have been laid out for each other to see and there's nothing left to be confessed– but Moon is leaving with the bitter sensation that she's leaving something behind that she wants to relish in.

It's hard to say goodbye when your heart is set somewhere else, but she doesn't mind going where the wind takes her. Nobody is gonna steal her thunder or shackle her down, even if that person had privately said goodbye by holding her in his arms for a little too long. For long enough for her to want to stay for a little longer.

At least he's fine with her leaving, even if it had been a little harder to part this time. Moon had left with the class and skip of a bunny, but she chalks her forlorn feelings up to the novelty of it all.

After all, she's not used to having somebody to come back to.

Moon tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. Last time had been different: her obligations had been much more oriented towards morality and simply a _debt_ she had to fulfill. Besides, the circumstances back then had pushed her away from Zeffarei while all wounds closed and she embarked into a little adventure of her own. Leaving at the wake of war has always been her specialty, to leave when things are fine so she can tie all the loose ribbons she's left behind.

But things are different now. Things are finally peaceful in Zeffarei; Hau and Lillie are together now, happy and satisfied. Gladion is thinking about his future, a future where she might be, too. And now, she has one last quest to finish, another adventure to sail into, even if she's alone.

But she can't deny that she's also excited as to what she's going to see, a smile constantly on her expression at the possibility of finding an infinity of treasures in Bakiria. "It's gonna be tons of fun," she says to nobody in particular, "even if I'm gonna be lonely."

"I hope you tell me all about what you find when you come back, Ma'am." Moon eagerly nods, her smile growing into a grin. "I'll have the ties ready in a sec, so just hold on for a minute."

"Can I at least leave this bag in there? Lillie's gotten overzealous with the food." She gives her backpack a little shake. "I'm gonna grow some muscles just by carrying this thing."

The sailor nods at her and beckons her to come aboard, beginning to untie the bridge for her to walk in. She hasn't walked even five steps towards the ship before a clear voice cuts through the morning air.

"Hold on."

Moon's eyes widen, familiar with this voice, and she briskly turns around. Her eyes widen even further as she comes face to face with familiar green eyes, a familiar scowl, and a familiar set of clothes. His hair is gently disheveled, and Gladion looks just as grumpy as always despite the circumstances.

"Gladion?" Curious, Moon watches him approach her, head tilted. "What are you doing here? We already said goodbye earlier, Gladbug." Coy and playful, she backhands his chest. "Is someone missing me already?"

A chuckled huff blows past his lips, shaking his head. "Don't flatter yourself. We said goodbye two hours ago." And then, he digs his hands into his pockets, shifting his weight from side to side. "And… I'm not here to see you off."

She arches an eyebrow. "You aren't?"

Gladion shakes his head. "No." His eyes shift away from hers, avoiding her gaze as he breathes in, but doesn't quite breathe out. "I'm going with you."

He watches her expression shift into complete surprise, thrown off by his brazen statement. Admittedly, this isn't something he would do under normal circumstances, but she's _never_ been within those normal circumstances anyway. Her eyes dart from his traveling cape to the backpack he wears – which she's seen only now – and then, to his own eyes, shocked.

She urgently takes a step closer. "What? You can't come with me!"

His eyes narrow with an amused smile. "As far as I know, you don't have a say on what I do."

"That's not the point!" Moon folds her arms, and even though she doesn't look completely against the idea, she's skeptical for sure. "What made you change your mind anyway? Like, I didn't _ask_ you to come, but you've never been interested in these things."

And at this he can't prevent a small cough from coming out of his throat. He had anticipated her asking about his motivations, but the sheer curiosity in her voice is what makes it harder; they have talked things out already, indeed, but laying his emotions out in the open is still _so damn hard_ when she looks at him like that.

Is that the same face he makes at her when she talks? Like she has all his focus and nothing else but her matters at this moment? Because it's making his heart squeeze and his tongue is tripping over itself even when the answer is crystal clear.

Yet still, he rubs the back of his neck and deflects her gaze. "I… I talked with Lillie earlier after you left, and she gave me some tips." Moon clearly doesn't understand his point yet, head tilting an inch further. He grows even more embarrassed. "And she said that a good Emperor has to… know where their feelings lie. I need to explore that side of me now."

Gladion leaves the sentence vague on purpose, but judging by how her cheeks catch on subtle fire, she's caught his drift perfectly well. However, another layer of meaning reaches her in a matter of seconds, bringing her to alarm.

"Hold on, but what about your coronation? Lillie told me they had planned to hold it next week, right?" Moon takes his hand and holds it up, frantic. "It's gonna take me much, much more than a week to be done! You won't get there in–"

"I'm not going to accept the crown."

And all urgency is slapped off her face with his simple statement, soft and adoring but also mildly stern, decided. The sun is beginning to rise, and a few specs of sunlight catch with her charcoal eyes.

Gladion sighs, raspy. "I can't become the Emperor yet. I just arrived at Zeffarei, I'm relatively new to the family and I'm still a little too young to bear a whole Empire on my shoulders." Despite the many times he's told this to himself, alone in his bedroom, it still takes a push to get the words out of his mouth. "And… I don't think I deserve the crown just yet. I can't step up to the throne with half-boiled determination by riding my wave of good reputation. I'm not good enough for this Empire. I need to become better so I don't let anyone down ever again."

Moon's eyes widen, and he takes his hand out of her grip to hold her cheek. She leans into his touch; Gladion is convinced she does this without realizing at this point. Her eyes search for a crack of doubt in his eyes; something that could imply he's forcing himself to say all of this.

But she finds none of that. All she sees is determination, passion, a touch of softness, and fierce dedication. "You would never disappoint us, Gladion."

"I know I wouldn't, but this isn't a matter of disappointing people. Being an Emperor would mean being better than Lusamine, and I'm not mature enough to be better. If I want to fix this Empire, I need to start from the bottom and go up." His thumb traces the soft skin of her cheekbone. "I need to be my best self to be a good Emperor. And my journey begins here, with you."

When did he become this smooth? Is this what people mean when they say to speak with the heart and not with the mind? Because holy shit, it's working wonders now.

Moon purses her lips, her hand covering his. "I guess we're always gonna begin stuff together, eh?"

"That seems to be the case." Gladion is tempted to pull her into a hug and call it a day, but he knows that he can't do that just yet. "Though I won't be accepting the crown, I have been filling in for a position in the army with Hau as a general. If things go alright, I should be there to swear the charge in two weeks."

"So… a general, eh? General Gladion has a nice ring to it." Her eyes twinkle in pure approval, smiling at him. "You're gonna end up dressing the whole army in black if you're accepted."

"Blood is harder to see on black than white," he states matter-of-factly, and Moon nods in hesitant approval. "But until then, we will have lots of time to spend together. And to… talk, because I guess we have to talk, right?"

Because they had talked about their feelings, but that's something he has something to talk about, too. Moon blinks, clearly taken aback. "I thought we had, um, said everything we had to say, right?"

Her cheeks blister. He blushes just as badly. "I– yeah, we did, but… I have been thinking about this– about _us_." Gladion isn't sure what he will find as he talks, so he decides to avoid her eyes. "And… I don't think I'm ready yet. For all of this. For us."

"What do you mean? Did I do something wro–"

He presses his index on her parted lips, and she ceases speaking instantly. "Arceus, you never shut up, do you?" Her lips curl into a pout, but it's all fake and childish, much like her. His eyes become gentle. "In the same way I can't go for the throne, I don't want to give myself to you when I don't think I'm my best self. That's not fair to you, or me, or anyone. After all this time, you deserve me putting my all into growing. We make good rivals, but I want to make an even better… boyfriend, if you will let me in the future."

That last word makes both of them flush a little harder. His voice holds her fast and close, mustering as much will and tenderness into his words as possible, knowing that this isn't easy to say, much less to hear. Her expression is that of confusion at first, but when he finishes talking, all that is left is something he's never seen before, never directed to him: awe.

"But you're already good enough," she says like the insistent little devil she is. "I don't want you to change. I don't want some uptight piece of shit with the manners of a gentleman, y'know. There are enough Ilimas in this world to last an eternity."

Her comment causes him to chuckle. "I agree with that." And then, he frowns just a little, enough to convey his conviction without seeming angry. "But… the truth is, I want to be my best self for you, for me, and the Empire." Gladion isn't fond of this lovesick tone he's using, nor knows how he's even pulling it off, but her awestruck expression makes it all worth it. "You have been constantly trying to grow and be better, and I need to chase after that, too. I want to be my best self before we start dating."

A lapse of silence follows his words, with him drinking from each of her stunned blinks, probably unsure as to how to react. Gladion is rarely this earnest and honest about his feelings, but as she had once said, he's become much more confiding with these things and that's something he has to be proud of. She makes him feel proud about the silliest of things, but he has realized that these silliest of things are those that make him the happiest, too.

Moon purses her lips. "Well, considering we kissed–"

" _Many times_."

Gladion only says that to make her blush and he succeeds spectacularly. "Um, considering we kissed, yeah, then I guess we're doing things the other way around." He agrees with her, nodding as his other hand takes refuge on her waist. "This is…"

"I know. Wild."

Her voice, however, is caught in disagreement. "No, this– I mean, _us_ – I just never expected it, y'know." Conflicted, she presses her hands on his chest. Her right hand finds its way on top of his heart, feeling his pulsing, expectant heartbeat. "I never expected to have something like this with anyone, so it's a little–"

"Scary?"

A stuttered chuckle escapes her. "Yeah, just a little." Moon lifts her head to meet his gaze, brazenly staring. "I don't know how any of this works, so I'm relieved you wanna wait. I'm tone-deaf with these things."

Gladion wants to tell her that yeah, he knows, but he doesn't– because he's just as clueless as she is, and that's something he doesn't hesitate to tell her. "It's fine, we will discover it together. We will have lots of time to spare now. You once told me it's fine to be scared, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but Bakiria is gonna be rough– we're gonna walk for a long time."

"That's fine by me."

"And there are lots of monsters."

"I have Silvally with me."

"And I'm gonna stick my head into any cave that I cross paths with, even if it's straight under a volcano."

Gladion pinches her nose softly, making her yelp. "Do you want to lead us straight into our graves?"

"That's not my point, Arceus," Moon says with a shaky laugh, rubbing her nose. When the giggles fade, all that's left is embers of worry and concern. "Bakiria is gonna be us walking across deserts to get to a monastery and going to caves and exploring places. It's gonna be boring for you, maybe, and I–"

At this, Gladion's grip on her cheek tightens and he leans down slowly, softly pressing his lips against hers in a fashion too loving to be his, but he's starting to embrace these impulses of his like second nature– turns out he loves kissing Moon, more so when she squeaks and instantly reciprocates the kiss like she's also been expecting it for ages.

She melts into his touch a second too late. He breaks the contact after mere seconds, gracing her with a soft, pure smile. "Are you kidding? We have been doing this for _ages_. Life will never be boring with you, Moon."

Her lips part, speechless. Gladion knows he's one of the very few people in this world that can make her go silent and make _that_ face at him, as though she has too many things to say but she simply _can't_ speak. Stealing her breath away will always be one of his favorite hobbies, just like she wastes no time in making him blush his life away when she has the chance.

Just like she does now, smirking out of her reverie and getting on her tiptoes to press another kiss on his lips. "If we're gonna wait, then maybe you should stop kissing me, mister."

"And miss out on that blush of yours?"

"You say that as if you were any better!" Far from backing off, she puts her hands on his shoulders and leans in until their noses are brushing, staring at him in a challenge. "Your neck goes all red like a Cheri berry. It's the cutest thing ever."

Gladion certainly doesn't like losing to her in affairs like these, but they will have plenty of time to both spar and decide who has the cutest blush color; so, when the sailor calls for them to board the ship, they approach the ship hand in hand, leaving the teasing for later.

As they walk up the bridge, Moon turns to him, grinning. "I hope you don't mind it if we go greet a few friends of mine."

"Friends?"

"Yeah." A wicked grin shapes her lips into sheer evil. "They got sharp teeth and the bodies of a crocodile. I bet it'll be heaps of fun."

Gladion chases her into the ship, laughing all the way in.

* * *

Moon bids farewell to Gladion two weeks after their arrival at Bakiria.

Moon comes back to Zeffarei a month after his departure.

And, finally, Gladion is coronated as the Emperor of the Aedus two years after the dust has settled.

One year and a half after his coronation, somebody knocks on Moon's door, right in time to duck as a body comes flying out of the academy, doors shattered with one frustrated headmistress cracking her knuckles. "I swear to Arceus, if you guys keep sending me novices to spar with, I'll end up using you guys as punching bags instead!"

The many soldiers training in the fields of her academy shudder a nod, and the courier himself standing at her door pales about three tones. When her viperous eyes land on him, she cracks a grin, dusting off her _ao dai_.

The fearsome headmistress of the Springblossom Academy waves at him like the teacup is full and uncracked. "Hey there! Sorry about the fuss, some people just don't know their places. I'm gonna end up requesting another paid leave at this rate." Folding her arms, her grin tempers to a smile. "What brings you here? Oh, do you wanna spar? You look like you got some muscles. That should be fun."

The courier frantically presents her with an item. "N-No, absolutely not! I'm the courier, and… I was asked to give this to you."

Moon lets out a small ' _oh_?' and looks down at his hands. Her eyes go round as she finds a supple bouquet of hibiscus in his arms, but this doesn't seem to please her; if anything, she looks annoyed.

She gingerly takes the flowers, examining them with visible skepticism. "Arceus, I told Ilima already to _not_ send flowers. I don't have any more vases to put them in, anyway. Is he sending these because I beat him at cards the other day?" Moon twists her face in thought. "Could you please tell him to stick the flowers up his ass next time? I have little to no space in my house for these."

"Actually, ma'am, these don't come from the Captain." _For once_ , he wants to add. Moon's brow sinks. "They come from somebody else, but I'm not allowed to reveal their identity. They did tell me to show you the note attached to the flowers."

The courier fishes a small note out of the bunch of flowers and shows it to her. Curious, Moon deftly unfolds the note while balancing the surprisingly heavy bouquet in her arms. While the note has very little text written on it, she takes her time to read every word written on it, eyes widening with each letter her eyes take in.

The courier grows impatient. "Do you happen to need anything yourself, ma'am?"

Moon shakes her head dismissively, and the courier shuffles away from sight, leaving Moon to read the small note over and over; no matter how many times she goes over it, the reaction is always the same.

" _Wait for me a little longer_." The note says, and it takes her breath again; she knows this handwriting. " _I will be there soon_."

Her heart catches the meaning behind those letters faster than her head does, squeezing tightly as a wide, stupid smile curls her lips. She embraces the crimson bouquet to her chest, biting her lip.

"You dumbass Emperor," she murmurs to herself, skipping into the academy to put the flowers in some water. "Took you long enough."

In the distance where her eyes can't see, a pair of heads pop up from behind some bushes, revealing the current head of the Royal Guard and the actual leader of the _whole_ Empire, that being Hau and Gladion respectively.

Hau watches her kick some debris of the doors away as she walks into the academy, then choosing to focus on his very flustered yet hopeful friend. "So… flowers?" Hau says, impish. "Never thought I'd see _you_ of all people giving _her_ flowers. Ilima's gonna be so pissed off that it worked for you and not him."

Gladion quickly collects his wits and stands up, tugging at the collar of his shirt. "As long as she caught the hint, I'm fine with Ilima wanting to cut my head off. He knows full well he won't get anywhere."

Hau absent-mindedly follows after Gladion as they walk away from the academy. Some people stop and greet them, and Hau salutes them with a vigorous smile while Gladion merely bows politely. It has been more than one year since the coronation but, really, everyone has known them for a while as the saviors of the Empire, and possibly the whole Realm; they aren't famous per se, but they have a reputation that helps them walk around without much of an issue.

And this reputation also applies to their secrecy when Gladion is making a special delivery to a very special assassin. The sorcerer whistles. "Three years. That's a _lot_ of time."

"Three years, seven months, and a few days." Hau's eyes widen at the precision, but Gladion is merely smirking in a bitter sentiment. "And I'm aware that most people have been making bets behind our backs since I came back from Bakiria."

"And you're just jumping into action now, dude." Hau playfully nudges his side with his elbow. Thank goodness he's wearing his casual clothes, or else the plates of his armor would have Gladion bleeding on the floor. "Watching ya' two flirt was super fun, though. I'm gonna miss teasing you two about that."

Gladion sighs. "We were _not_ flirting."

"So I guess that the night of her birthday you stole her away to just read books with her?" Hau jumps right in front of him, wagging his eyebrows suggestively while Gladion ducks his head with a blush. "She came to Lillie's pharmacy with a very interesting bruise on her neck. I guess you gave her a very nice spar for her birthday, _hmmmmm_?"

Gladion _hates_ how that night is consistently held over his head because he had _not_ meant for it to happen, and neither had she– it's not like anything happened, other than him slamming her on the nearest wall possible and making out with her until she couldn't feel her legs. In retrospect, they had been holding their affections back for about a year and a half at the time, so when they were alone in her house, conveniently close to the academy's facilities, they had taken the opportunity and flew away with it.

And Arceus hadn't it felt good to kiss her until she was breathless. And hadn't her nails felt good on his bare chest, that night. It didn't go any further than the wall's surroundings, otherwise things would have ended pretty badly.

But the next day he met up with her while she talked with Lillie at the pharmacy wing of the palace, and they battled their feelings away like nothing had happened.

"I gave her a _necklace_." To match with the hickeys. "You gave her a cooking book and a polishing stone. You couldn't have been any more original even if you tried."

"Dude, she's my friend. My pal. My _bro_. You two should be _married_ by now, but I get the feeling she's gonna be the one to spring the ring on you one day." Gladion growls in disapproval, but Hau merely laughs it off like he's been doing all along. When the laughter ends, all that is left is curiosity. "Do ya' think she's still gonna want you? Ilima is _super_ insistent. Maybe she'll like, go for his pants and not yours."

"Hau, don't be gross."

"I'm not bein' gross, I'm just being realistic. It's been three years. And seven months. And some days." Hau dragging his pickiness all over his face doesn't feel as bad as it should; he's too deep into his own feelings to care anymore. "Do ya' think it's gonna work?"

Gladion bites back a smile. "Considering the way she looked at the flowers, I think I'm going to be extraordinarily lucky."

Many things could go wrong, but Gladion is convinced he has all odds in his favor. It might as well feel like Arceus is finally smiling at him after years of misfortune.

* * *

A few hours after the academy has closed its doors and it's snowing outside, Moon stretches her arms, tilting her chair back with a yawn that nearly unhinges her jaw. Her neck feels sore all over, and her limbs feel close to numb after sitting on her desk for _hours_. The oil lamp on her table gives light to the hundreds of papers she's been signing, as well as some assignments that have been passed to her from teachers at the technical wing of the academy.

Moon loves being a headmistress; she loves bragging about her power; she loves fighting novices out of their prepubescent arrogant reverie. Moon, however, despises paperwork, and she can't help but wonder how Gladion can sit on his desk for nights on end doing this same task.

She lets out a faint groan as she stretches and curves her body, blinking dots of drowsiness out of her eyes.

And then, a soft knock snaps her out of it. Moon's house is fairly small, consisting of only a kitchen, a bedroom upstairs and a bathroom, all of it annexed to the actual building of the academy. The structure isn't the safest, as Gladion and Hau had warned her when they helped her build the house, but everyone knows better than to barge into her home to steal anything of worth– which, by the way, she possesses in spades.

Maybe a thief would be smart enough and actually knock on her door before breaking into her home, and that's what she expects when she opens the door.

Instead, she finds Gladion of Aedus at the threshold, waving a lazy hand at her. Moon rubs her eyes, sleepy, and groans out a greeting. "Somebody looks tired and very much done for today."

"I beg to differ."

But her face contorts with what Gladion identifies as a held back yawn, making him smirk. He steals a glance behind her and sees the mountains of paperwork piling on her desk. "Exam night?"

"Not exams– I _refuse_ to be an actual teacher. They're just reports. That's the bad thing about being important, you gotta sign so much stuff." Moon tiredly leans against the threshold while Gladion observes each of her moves. Her eyes land on his clothes, and they widen a little. "You look fancy tonight. Are you out to rob a bank? I should've known being Emperor would wear your edge thin eventually."

Gladion simply chuckles, shaking his head. After all this time, jokes like those can only make him laugh to himself. "Actually, no. You look like you could use a few hours away from your desk, and I might have a way to give you just that."

Moon recognizes those words because she's said them to him, in the past. Many nights has he holed himself up in his office at the palace, and not even Lillie had been able to pry him out of there. Granted, he doesn't spend _all_ nights working himself to exhaustion, but most of those nights end with Moon knocking on his door at ungodly hours and taking him out to Wicke's inn for a few drinks.

And he seems to be offering her just that, except he's wearing a shirt and there is this faint splash of cologne on him that is nothing like the iron shrill she's gotten used to on him, rough and tough, but she finds that she adores this scent just as much.

Her mind goes back to when she received his flowers; then back to when he promised her to be hers within time and with patience, all those years ago. Today isn't a special day at all: things have been routine in the academy, other than a sore ankle and a twisted elbow, and nothing has happened in Zeffarei other than Ilima arresting a couple of Blackring marauders in the background while she read a book during lunch break.

It's been snowing, though. And he looks… rather dashing.

Moon gives him a knowing smirk, but she can't help the twinkles of hope in her eyes. "Oh? Is the Emperor of the Aedus asking a humble headmistress like me out?"

He's been rehearsing this conversation with himself for _hours_ just before coming here, so he knows exactly how to answer. Gladion takes a daring step closer, leaning an inch closer with a daredevil smile. "We both know you're anything but humble, _ma'am_."

Gladion watches her eyes widen at that little nickname. They have always had this game going on with the nicknames, and he _definitely_ hasn't used it more often after that kissing spree a few months ago, a few feet away from where she stands now. In the same way, she calls him 'sir', 'your Majesty', or 'lordy edgelordy', with the same sort of impact with the first two; the third just makes him laugh out loud now.

He waits for her answer, secretly fidgeting with the fabric of his pockets as he feigns aloofness, knowing deep down that if there's one person he will never fool then it has to be her.

And then, Moon gives him a lovely, quiet nod. "Give me five minutes to throw something on."

Moon doesn't quite _throw_ something on as much as she simply puts a shirt on with a pair of long pants. Moon and Gladion can now afford expensive clothes, and while he _has_ to wear them to follow etiquette, Moon _should_ wear them but she never does, which is equal parts amusing and terrifying. Many people can't take her seriously when she's intending to fight while clad in her pajamas, as one student once confessed to him during a meeting with the army Hau currently leads.

Gladion knows she can still kick ass even if she were in flippers, but that's a thought he would rather entertain when she's not in front of him, dashing in her simplicity and wearing a smile that he takes a thousand pictures of with his eyes.

Moon closes the door behind her. Keys are forgotten in favor of what he assumes is enthusiasm. "So… are you taking me out for dinner?"

With a smile just as coy, he offers her his hand. "That was my intention." She only makes use of his hand to jump down the steps of her academy, and then he lets go; they have done this a thousand times, mostly as an excuse for physical contact rather than its practicality. "It's a little chilly tonight, though."

Moon loops her arm around his. "Do you think I care about the weather?"

"Not since I saw you taking a dip in the Flabebé Park in the middle of winter."

"My house was warm."

"The lakes were _frozen_."

"And I had just come from a run! Cold water is great for sore limbs, Gladbug." Her hand pats his shoulder gently. He rolls his eyes, not fighting the smile that curls his lips anymore. "Anyway, where are you taking me? I hope it's not a doctor. I look tired but trust me I'm _not_."

Gladion playfully tugs at her cheek, taking her along the empty streets of Zeffarei. A thin crunch of snow covers the slates, but they never slip. "I'm taking you to a doctor, but we're grabbing dinner."

This is a long-standing joke she gets immediately. "Oh, Bellossom Inn? You have good taste."

Wicke had _definitely_ not asked him to take Moon there whenever their first date occurred, almost four years ago. And he _definitely_ hadn't found the idea to be ridiculous, but here they are today– walking side by side like they are friends, like his heart isn't throbbing and like he hasn't been waiting three whole years for this moment of privacy with her.

Three years. Thirty-six months. More than a hundred weeks. More than a thousand days. If he thinks of how long it had taken, he might die of frustration, so he doesn't think about that.

Instead, he focuses on her voice as they talk amicably, sometimes bickering, sometimes laughing. She criticizes his dark trousers and he picks at the tousled locks of hair she had failed to comb, putting them behind her ear with fake annoyance. Moon then stops short, pinches his fringe with her fingers and tugs on them, and when she asks if she should have cut more, his voice grows fond and he says that she did it just _right_. And he adds a small _for once_ to make her angry, but all he gets is a chuckle and a flash of her knives under her shirt, threatening.

They sit down in the inn, surrounded by little to no people. Wicke has some employees attending the few tables with food, but when they come in, they are instantly taken to a table right by a window, which has a small candle lit up in the center. Per the waitress's word, all tables have candles as to not turn on the lights and hinder the guests' sleep, but both Moon and Gladion are fine with that.

They order food while they talk. Gladion sees Moon at least once every day, as there is no day he doesn't drop by the academy to train or no day where she doesn't sneak into Lillie's pharmacy and then into the throne room. Still, they take the opportunity to talk calmly, to talk about their day, stealing glances at each other when they sit in comfortable silence, looking outside as the snow falls gently.

She's beautiful, with some cuts on her hands and a big blue on her neck. Moon seemingly feels his gaze on her, for she turns in a blinking heap. When he doesn't peel her eyes off from her, she smiles confidently. "Like what you see?"

She takes a sip from her drink, and Gladion gives his wine a little spin in its cup. "Maybe just a little."

Moon chokes. When she stops coughing out her water, she looks at him like he's grown another head. "When did you get all smooth and flirty? Did I miss out on something?"

Yeah, they have been missing out on three years' worth of love and he can't tell her that he simply wants to make up for the lost time. He takes a sip of his wine. "If you think you're the only one who can get the other flustered, you're about to be proven wrong, Moon."

Gladion says her name intensely, savoring each of the letters as they loop past his lips. She leans back on her chair, eyeing him with a knowing, yet softened wisp that has him hooked from the get-go. Moon is all fangs and claws, but when they are alone and she looks at him this way, under the candlelight, a low fire settles right under his heart and makes him gulp.

When she smiles again, his cheeks splash with pink, and he prays she won't see it in the dim darkness of the room. A healthy rosy color tints her cheeks as well, that much he can tell. "I hope you prove me wrong a _lot_ tonight, then."

In the end, he doesn't quite do that, because they spend the date laughing and talking about Lillie and Hau for the most part; about Lillie's job at the sorcery pharmacy in the palace, about Hau's job in the Royal Guard and how _pissed_ Ilima is that he's still in the same rank after years of work. The Captain is taking things in stride, so there's no bitterness left behind. Ilima might be an arrogant little shit, but he has a good heart underneath all those layers.

This topic eventually carries itself out of the inn when they leave. Gladion is about to offer her his arm, but his question immediately dies when she wipes a little spot of sauce off his lip, cackling as his face heats up.

"You look like one of those haunted chandeliers in the haunted mansions, those that they say that burn when intruders turn them on." On her tiptoes, she looks at him with intent, but weirdly enough, she doesn't move.

Gladion gulps. If this is supposed to be the night of their lives, he shall as well make it worth the time they have been bidding.

Cupping her neck gently, he brings her close to rub their noses together, eliciting a quiet laugh out of her that makes his knees weak. Eyes closed, she smiles shakily. "Arceus, I _kinda_ missed that."

He lifts an eyebrow, smile crooked. "Just kinda?"

"Just kinda."

But it's still progress, and a reason to not let go of each other just _yet_ – this is just the start.

Content and eager, they walk along the snow-capped streets, and when she thinks he will drop her home, Gladion takes a turn into the Flabebé Park. The artificial grove is silent at this hour, with nobody but them walking between the trees and the small ponds. Gladion has made sure this place is well taken care of, and when he finds Moon to be looking at a pond wistfully, her reflection shines just as bright as her own eyes.

"It's weird to think I used to use these to drown in my own misery, at the time." Moon snorts, and he gently leads her away from the pond. "Man, time flies when you're having fun, eh?"

"Would you really call that time fun?"

"I mean, _no_ , but all that followed after _was_ fun."

There is a question in her eyes he doesn't dare answer, so all he does is nod and walk alongside her.

The Flabebé Park has small streams of freshwater branching throughout the zone, along with bridges that Moon and Gladion never bother crossing. They skip over one of the streams as a shortcut to a zone with fewer trees, bickering about wet ankles and soaked shoes.

They walk the rest of the path quietly, with her looking up at the stars. His eyes are on the sky too, but he wonders if she's thinking of him as much as he's thinking of her, so vibrant and present by his side.

The answer comes in a matter of seconds. "Gladion?"

"Hm?"

Moon takes a step towards him, and his hand twitches as it brushes with hers. "Hold my hand?"

That's all he needs to lace his fingers with hers, earning a soft giggle from her. The sound is rare in her, just like his even rarer lazy smiles and earnest laughter, and his lips twitch in a private smile. Gladion keeps his other hand in the pocket of his trousers as they amble, but soon enough, she stops walking to point at the sky, eyes wondrous and covered in golden specks.

The sky above them is dotted with stars and golden clouds, sparkling like dust and glitter on the coveted dark sky. The moon is shy and small tonight, yet bathes both Emperor and assassin in a warm, candid light. The temperature isn't exactly cold, but it's enough for him to appreciate the squeeze of her hands, the brush of her fingers on his hand, and how each stroke gives him little jolts of warmth he's only ever felt when he looks at her.

A small brush on his cheek distracts him from the beautiful sky. When he looks down, she's standing in front of him, a hand close to his face, hovering over his cheek.

Gladion reaches for her hand and he presses it on his cheek, where her fingers spread to feel his skin. "You look so pretty under all the stars," she whispers, rubbing the tips of her fingers on his skin. Her smile grows, silky and velvety. "You've always been very handsome, you know. It's unfair for you and Lillie to hog all the good genes in our group."

His lips' corners twitch, and a little laugh bursts past his throat. "Can't you just compliment me like a normal person?"

"Not in your wildest dreams, Gladion."

And she laughs afterward, more to herself than anything else, and her eyes rise to the stars again. Gladion keeps her hand on his cheek, his other moving to her waist, pushing her close while they watch the stars; but his eyes fall to her shortly after, taking in how her eyes sparkle, how her lips part and the way her body shifts with each of the quiet breaths she takes.

Gladion wonders when he became so weak about having her in his arms like this.

He wonders when exactly he fell so hard and so fast for her; and he realizes that maybe he's been denying himself too many things for too long, and that _she_ is one of the things he can't live without anymore.

His fingers gingerly brush some hair off her forehead, and he calls her name in a whisper. "Moon."

A questioning hum and a gasp, and his lips brush over hers, his eyes gently gazing into hers with the fondness of a loving husband, and all she can do is giggle breathlessly and hold onto him, biting her lower lip as he closes the minimal distance between them, finally meeting her lips in a loving kiss– one he's been denying himself for far too many months, a touch so sinful but so _right_ Gladion wonders how he's lived without her for so long.

His lips glide against hers easily, slowly, taking in the little gasps that she releases the closer he pulls her, but before he can go any further, he breaks away, taking just one second to breathe in her dazed eyes before speaking again.

Words come to him, but his eloquence is yet again lost.

All he can muster is one pressing question, one that has been chasing his mind with every passing day leading up to this very night.

"Is… Is it too late? Am I too late?"

At first, the meaning is amiss for her, but then her eyes widen and all surprise dissolves into a smile. The softness sharpens into a tease. "Maybe just a little," she leans up to nudge her nose with his, completely shattering the last bits of his composure with that single gesture. "But… it was completely worth it."

His eyes grow wide; hopeful, longing, staring at the bundle of joy and laughter in his arms like she's hung the stars in the sky above them. "Then… will you, uh, be my girlfriend? Because I don't want to wait anymore. I'm tired of waiting."

The crinkles of happiness around her eyes deepen, grow to a bark of disbelieving laughter that has her trembling under his touch. Moon shakes her head, biting her lower lip. "Of course I will, you edgelord. I would have waited for you for a decade if you asked me."

And with that last thing said, he sweeps her deeper into his arms to send her into a searing kiss, making her squeak as he chuckles against her lips, arms curled around her as hers loop around his neck, pushing him impossibly close; for a second, he feels he might fall, but he never does, and neither does she.

Moon murmurs his name in pleasure as he glides his lips against hers meticulously, memorizing the shape of her mouth and the taste of sweet jam, of some butter from the dessert, and the little bit of wine he had given her to taste earlier.

Her teeth nip on his lower lip, and he lets her in like he's been dying to all along, like he did that night at her house– except this time it's not forbidden, and when his tongue curls around hers and she shudders in his hold, he can take in that noise and keep it in his pocket for all eternity. Her fingers dig into his hair and he lifts her a little to where her feet are barely touching the ground anymore.

In this universe where they were meant to be star-crossed and antagonistic, it turns out they have ended up as nothing but.

And Gladion couldn't be happier that some deity put her in his life that fateful day.

Breathless and very much a little too enthusiastic, Gladion parts from her to put in a small sentence, ragged and husky. "Now that we're officially dating, can I finally ask Ilima to shove all the flowers he sends you up his a–"

Before he can finish, her lips mute him with pearls of laughter vibrating in her chest, taking his breath away once again and for more nights to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA they are FULLY CANON NOW I'M SCREAMINGGGGGGGGGG I HAVE NO WORDS VGRBRFHJDOIKOPSLA
> 
> I can't believe we're finally here. Lona is finally canon. They began hating each other's guts like fucking CRAZY and now they're canon THEY'RE IN LOVE AND THEY FINALLY HAVE THEIR HAPPY EVER AFTER I'M SO HAPPY FOR THEM
> 
> imagine having to endure all this Cyrus-Lusamine nonsense for months, having to wait for your boo for weeks, having to wait for your guy to just GET HIS SHIT TOGETHER FOR YEARS and now they're finally together GOD FUCKING DAMMIT. Tbh the only reason the story was so long is because 1. pacing, 2. I needed to develop their friendship deeply before they got together 3. this nonsense of a plot LMAO
> 
> also FUCKING THANK ME that I didn't write another whole ass arc out of them waiting for two FUCKING years to finally get together, I had and STILL have lots of ammo to write about: I had even thought of throwing some drama with Gladion being an emperor and MAYBE he's offered a political marriage and Moon just fucking DIPS somewhere out of Zeffarei to find herself??? because I iamagine that after falling in love for the first time and having him just marry someone else must hurt like HELL. they'd suffer and I'd be so, so happy tbh
> 
> but I won't write them because I already have 2 other projects to work on orz
> 
> so that was something lmao
> 
> technically speaking the story is done here but the epilogue's all fluff and a timeskip, so it's the culmination of everything really. Wish I had more space to write but I did this to myself LMAO, it's been a long, long road but we're finally at our destination :')) I doubt there's anybody still reading the story, but it makes me happy to think that whoever's gotten this far is satisfied, or so I hope hbgfjkldks
> 
> in any case this was all for today! There's next chapter and MAYBE something else, but that's still up to debate and I'll also discuss that next chapter, the finale!!!!
> 
> I'll see you guys there, take lots of care! <3


	20. The Story of a Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes what matters the most is not the endgame, but the journey.

"Hm…"

Moon wakes up to arms wrapped around her, with soft kisses being pressed along the length of her neck, stirring her awake. She snuggles deeper into the pillows, groaning faintly. "Gladion…"

The low bass of a chuckle vibrates within his chest against her back, his hand caressing the bare skin of her hip."Good morning, Moon."

A breathy spree of giggles bubbles out of her mouth. He continues peppering her skin with innocent brief kisses, those that make her giddy all over even after years of waking up to this. The hand that isn't on her hip is entwined with her other, both spread on the white pillows as the light of morning streams into the wide windows of the palace.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to wake me up?" she asks groggily, smiling all the while. He hums in agreement, nodding against her neck with a smirk she's learned to memorize by heart. "'Cause I'm not complaining."

"I can tell," he says, just as groggy and husky as her, leading her to believe he woke up short ago himself. He leans up to press one single kiss under her ear, brushing some hair off the surface. His touch is always a clear opposite of his haunting, everlasting frowns; it's soft. Longing. Searching for her. "Somebody's not wearing much under the blankets."

"I didn't hear you complaining last night," she comments, smile smothered on the feathery pillows, but he chases her, relentless in his sweet onslaught of morning kisses. "And how did I end up here anyway? I'd _swear_ we crashed in my room, didn't we?"

" _You_ crashed there. I took you here." His whole body is half-pressed against her now, legs tangled as he gives her neck a little nibble. "You know I can't stand sleeping in different rooms. It makes no sense."

"I don't like waking you up," she mumbles into the pillow, both trying to escape his kisses to get more sleep but also wanting his touch all the same. "I got here late and I still had stuff to do."

When they first started sleeping together, Gladion had insisted that they slept away from each other because he might hog the blanket; when she heard this, Moon had happily told him she would warm him up, and like the little sucker he is for her, he had immediately rushed to her in a blushing but content heap.

It's an unspoken rule between them to always sleep beside one another when they can, but sometimes they have to stay up late to tend to their responsibilities, or maybe one of them comes back from a mission and they are undecided if they should sleep or stay awake. Moon has a room for herself at the other wing of the palace, so Gladion had had to walk for a little to take her to where she is.

Not to mention that he went the extra mile to put a shirt on her. The one that looks a little bigger on her, probably his oldest. Gladion smiles against her neck, his arm curling around her waist to push her flush against him, his chest meeting her back.

"You weren't this considerate when we got married, Moon."

"And you weren't this touchy either," she breathes out, in pure bliss. "That's what years of marriage do to you. We've become boring."

The hand entwined with hers touches the ring wrapped around her finger. It's a simple band with little to no elegance or spice to it, mostly because both are extra yet very practical people. Gladion had bought her the prettiest but simplest ring he could find, and much to his surprise, she hadn't complained about the lack of diamonds or gems.

She turns just a little, enough for her free hand to touch his chest. Gladion watches a beautiful smile form as she feels the necklace on his chest, from which his own ring hangs. "You forgot to take this off."

His nose brushes with the crook of her neck, sighing contently. "I don't want to take it off." He breathes in the morning glory of her skin, eyes closed to take it all in. "It's been five years and I'm still not tired of looking at it."

A sleepy giggle breathes into life. She nudges the pillow with her forehead, seeking the sweet submersion of sleep once more. "What time is it, by the way? I'm all sluggish and sleepy."

"It's still early," Gladion replies, sighing happily. His hand delicately pushes her hip to him, turning to where she's facing the ceiling and he can wrap himself all around her. "I'm tired too."

Moon snorts softly, her hand finding shelter in his hair. "I slept very well last night." She blinks her eyes open, finding him to be staring at her from her shoulder. "I always sleep too well when I sleep here, and now I don't wanna get up."

"Hm, neither do I." His lips trail up her jaw, reeling a faint shudder out of her. "Maybe we could play hooky for a little longer."

"Does the Emperor of the Aedus want to sleep in and snuggle all morning?"

He hides the furious blush in her neck again, biting back a smile as she laughs. They have been married for more than five years and _this_ – waking by her side, the cozy cuddling nights, the softened banter, the lazy naps, and just her company – will never get old.

And waking up to find his wife – _Arceus_ , he loves calling her that – washed in golden lights and dewy traces of sleep, along with a few hickeys and a smile, will never not make his heart throb in his ribcage.

"I kinda wanna stay in all morning, too," she comments off-handedly, running her fingers up and down his scalp, knowing how much he _adores_ that. "Besides… somebody's gotta pamper the birthday boy a little, right?"

Gladion exhales slowly against her skin, rubbing his nose and cheek on her. "I guess you have to, otherwise it might count as a crime."

"I wouldn't wanna make my husband unhappy," she says, airy, clearly still half-asleep. Her eyes are awake, however, peering up at him with love written all over her features. "So I might have to comply and stay in with him to give him kisses and hugs all morning."

The long sigh he releases after that is ridiculously lenient and weak, but it's always worth it if it means staying with her all day. "That would be very nice."

Little laughs follow his statement, and Moon cradles his cheeks to pry him from her shoulder. The buttons of the shirt she wears are undone at the higher spots – a very intelligent move, in hindsight – giving view to the valley of her breasts and the bright hickeys he had left on her body the night before.

"Happy birthday, darling." It's a nickname she's used a thousand times before in jest, but it's never a joke when they are under the sheets, holding each other close. "I guess I owe you a few kisses in exchange for those you gave me to wake me up, eh?"

"Oh? Are you planning revenge?"

Grinning, she pulls him down to nudge his nose with his, pressing a short kiss on his lips. "Do you wanna find out?"

Gladion doesn't think twice, leaning close to kiss her softly. Their kisses aren't always soft, and they're never this heartfelt and intense, but he's come to learn that every day with her will always be different, as well as every kiss and every touch. He presses his lips languidly on hers to where she can smile, murmuring his name lovingly in a voice Moon will only use when they're alone.

Getting married to her had been the best decision he had ever made, only below his decision to leave Ludwig Town and learning that Lillie was his sister. Meeting Hau is somewhere close to those. With mornings like these, though, she comes real damn close.

They have been married for years now, and nothing ever gets old. They wake up in each other's arms, though she's the one to usually wake him up with kisses and hugs. Gladion doesn't consider either of them to be romantic or sweet, yet they always make room for some toe-curling affection in the morning. When they walk out of the room, they become the Emperor and his Empress, with him staying in the palace and her leaving to work at the academy.

Gladion had insisted she stayed in the palace with him, because the Empress doesn't need to dedicate herself to duties outside the palace, but she had insisted that ' _if I don't kick their asses, nobody will, and that's just terrible_ ', so she still works there. Sometimes she even stays to sleep in the academy when work gets a little too tough, and sometimes, he sneaks into her room to sleep by her, just as she sneaks into his room by the window instead of using the door.

But they will wake up to each other most days, dedicating each other a rain of soft kisses before becoming the bickering couple everyone knows and loves. He gives her lip a playful tug, though, and that changes the tone completely, fishing a small throaty moan out of her.

She breaks the kiss slowly, licking her lips. "Didn't you get enough last night, you greedy Emperor?"

"You know I will _never_ get enough," he mumbles, gravelly, placing soft kisses on her cheek that make her squeal. His hands remain anchored to her hips, rubbing the skin with his thumbs. "And I can tell you got it just as bad."

Gladion shuts whatever she's about to say in with another kiss, yet this one is a little more heated, searing, and passionate. The hands on his cheeks creep to his neck, where her arms entangle to push him even closer. She has a habit of messing with his hair, most of the time on purpose, even when they cross paths in a hallway during a long day and simply need to unwind some tension in the closest room available. Gladion doesn't like to think of himself as indecent, but Moon truly takes that side out of him.

She nips on his lower lip, parting his lips to sneak her tongue in, brushing with his in a loving caress. His hands lift her from the mattress just a few inches, enough to feel her nearly bare body against his, enough to make him growl possessively as her nails dig into his shoulders, one of his hands sneaking into her hair to pull at it. She moans breathlessly against him, giving him a playful bite that he groans at, and his hand migrates south to her thigh, touching the soft skin–

Gentle knocking on his door makes him spring out of her embrace with her in his arms, her head on his chest as they sit up. A familiar voice comes from the door. "Good morning. Can I come in?"

Gladion gives Moon a questioning gaze, to which she shrugs. The blond, seeing their moment has been interrupted, is close to seething. As the door parts open, he hides his wife in his arms, hoping that she won't be seen from the angle of the door– though their morning affections aren't new to anybody in the palace.

When the doors open, Gladion simply lets out a small, bothered, " _What_."

Mallow's head pops through the opened double doors, smiling. "Good morning, sir. I'm happy to see you're already awake. I hope I didn't disturb your sleep."

He yawns, unconsciously pushing Moon close to him, very aware that she's half-naked and that she's laughing to herself in silence against his chest. "It's fine. Did anything happen?"

"Not at all, sir. I'm here to inform you about your schedule before I leave for today." Mallow looks down at a small notebook. "You have a meeting in a couple of hours, and Miss Wicke came here yesterday while you were away to confirm your attendance at the annual gala next month."

Gladion's head tries to juggle the presence of the bundle of nerves and laughter in his arms with his responsibilities. The tasks sound familiar, and he chalks his slowness up to the fact that he's still half asleep. "Yeah, tell her I'll be going. With Moon, too."

Mallow nods, smiling a little wider. "The rest of your day is completely clear. I have made sure nobody schedules any more meetings today, as well as– _oh_."

Gladion realizes she's looking at a patch of fabric on Moon's shirt, spread over the blankets. Deeming herself to be found out, Moon groggily blinks and lifts her head from his chest, revealing herself with a sheepish yet sinful smile. Mallow realizes very quickly what had been going on before she walked in, and stammers a greeting.

"Ma'am, good morning to you too." Moon waves back, yawning. The servant is trying not to laugh, Gladion can tell. "Did I interrupt something?"

Gladion is tempted to say that _yeah, of course she fucking did_ , but Moon decides to take it up a notch. "I don't know, did she?"

Moon wags her eyebrows and smirks, looking at him in a tease. He growls, knowing that she's putting him on the ropes to break his usual etiquette and stoic composure, and he has to gulp back the desire to complain. His hands clasp around her in a silent threat. "No, it's fine. We'll be out in a few minutes."

"More than a few," Moon comments under her breath, and Mallow giggles into her mouth.

"I will see myself out, then." The cheeky servant waves again, dedicating them a bright smile. "Happy birthday, by the way. I truly hope you have a great day, sir!"

And the doors close again, leaving them in peace. They look at the door for two seconds, expecting somebody else to come in to ruin their warm morning glory, but when nobody comes again, Gladion sighs.

He gently looks down at her, finding her to be busy kissing all over his collarbone and chest, more soft than naughty. "If somebody else comes in I'm not responsible for my actions."

Moon, laughing at his gruff tone, leans back on the bed, pushing him down with her until he's towering over her with a gaze that is much, much more than affectionate. "Stop being grumpy, I'm all yours now."

Her legs curl around his hips, soft thighs encasing him in a way too familiar to not bring butterflies up his chest. Gladion sighs shakily as she sucks a small mark on the base of his throat. "You _really_ want to spoil me rotten today, don't you?"

Moon murmurs a small 'mhm', breaking away from him when she's left a sizeable hickey on his pale skin. "Today is your day, and I have a few things planned for us."

"Oh, you do?"

" _Mhmm_." That sounds sultry, dangerous, but her eyes are warm and teasing all the same. One of her hands slides down his neck to caress a line down his chest, to his stomach. "But I don't mind giving a small taste of it now to my very loving husband."

That's all it takes for him to tackle her further into the bed as she squeals in glee, letting him indulge in her love for an hour more or so.

* * *

"Oh, you two are simply unbelievable."

Gladion turns around from the counter, his arms wrapped around Moon from behind. Both have splashes of chocolate and batter on the corner of their lips and look nonchalant about this to a fault. Moon continues stirring the batter, eating a small chocolate chip as she looks directly at Lillie.

Hau laughs, sitting on the dining table by Lillie. "Man, I can't believe Gladbag is that clingy in the mornings. Did ya' give him one of those love potions Wicke made the other day?"

Lillie puts a hand on top of her husband's. "You know she was joking, right?"

"I know, I just wanna live for a few minutes thinking that those exist, even if it goes against normative and whatever." Hau sighs, then focuses again on his friends. "Is the birthday boy feeling all huggy and nice today, though?"

Gladion huffs and turns from them to the batter on Moon's hands. The assassin chuckles, shaking her head. "He's the only man in this universe to be more grumpy when awake than when he's sleepy. He's just a little soft today."

"I'm _not_ soft," he says, trying to not sound content at the prospect of having her right in his arms. "We didn't get much sleep last night, and I have today free to spend with my wife, I shall as well enjoy it."

He hears Lillie and Hau laugh to themselves. Lillie and Hau hadn't fully left the palace despite having an estate of their own at the back of Zeffarei. She has a department of pharmacy and sorcery within the palace, where she works to brew potions with Wicke's counseling and advice, much like her protegeé. Hau, on the other hand, works with Gladion relatively often, so he hangs out with them as often as he can and he must. They have a room for themselves in a wing of the palace, but they rarely sleep there anymore; they do often come to have breakfast and lunch.

Lillie still retains her title as the Great Enchantress after all these years, but she's chosen to make it a title rather than an occupation. Several people had tried to break into Zeffarei, mostly during his early months of sovereign, and Lillie had demonstrated that being quiet about her powers ends up being a very unpleasant surprise for their enemies.

She smiles at them both, happy. It's a look that Gladion will never stop being proud and happy about. "What are your plans for today, then? We could go to the Bellossom Inn later and greet Wicke. She will want to see you."

"I have a meeting in an hour, so I hope Moon hurries up with her pancakes."

"If you stopped hogging me, then maybe I'd get them done faster," she snickers, all punch but no bite.

"You're holding me too, _darling_."

Moon swiftly grabs a wooden spoon as Gladion grabs a spatula; their call for war. He springs out of her space to parrot her precise strike to his stomach. As they clash spoons and spatulas, she hums and smiles. "After his meeting, I got a few things planned. Grumpypants here needs a little break from his office. I'm starting to get jealous."

"We still gotta meet later, dude. We'll have a proper celebration for our dear Emperor." The word _Emperor_ is a cheeky tease, and while Gladion doesn't enjoy not being taken seriously, it's fine if _they_ are at the other end of the joke.

Ceasing their fighting, Moon puts some butter on a pan, which starts sizzling right away. She had promised him to make him chocolate pancakes months ago, and when they never found a morning to dedicate breakfast to it, she simply promised him to make him pancakes on his birthday.

She pours some of the batter into the pan. Arceus, it smells delicious.

Lillie smells the food too and hums in pleasure. "Oh, I forgot to say, Mother sent you a few gifts from the Solaris Monastery. I have them at home."

He swings his eyes away from the pan and to her, wide in surprise. "She did?"

"Yes. She gave them to me on my last visit last week." She presses her cheek on her hand, sighing; but it's not a sad sigh. After years of reconciling and constant tug-o-wars for peace, Lillie finally seems at ease with her mother. "She was very insistent about it. And proud, too."

Lusamine had ended up staying in the Solaris Monastery after months of rehabilitation, and much to everyone's delight – in some cases, disappointment– she had decided to give up the throne of the Aedus in favor of her daughter and estranged son. It had been a dignified way for her to end things, really, after a decade of abuse and mental games; an end that Gladion himself still doesn't think she deserved, but considering how things have turned out, he can't say it had been all bad.

Lusamine has been spending her time in the monastery since then, helping the monks restore most of the chi lost during the battle with Cyrus. Gladion has heard about projects concerning Bleakdross and Ravenspair, but those are things that will take lifetimes to restore to their former glory. Lusamine is now happy, in peace, sensitive and a little cold to the touch, but recovering the loving smiles and tender words that she once had before Mohn's disappearance.

She had attended his coronation as well, arm wrapped around her daughter's, eyes teary with what seemed to be clarity and memory after a lifetime of despair. Then she had wrapped her arms around him, smiling truthfully. " _You will be a great Emperor, Gladion_."

Gladion can't help but smile at the memory. That had been a day to remember. "We can have dinner later if that works." He looks at Moon right as she's flipping the pancake. He winces in fear as she _nearly_ makes a mess. "I don't know what Moon has planned for me, but…"

The smile she dedicates him is worth a thousand coins. It makes him melt _just_ a little bit. "Nothing too dangerous, don't worry. We're gonna take it easy today."

The three of them hold their breath at this revelation. Hau speaks first. "No tomb raiding?"

"Nope."

Lillie speaks next. "And you won't pillage a sunken ship, either?"

"We did that _once_ and a giant octopus nearly ate me alive, so we're not gonna try that again for a week or so." But she grins as though that's fine. She will rope him in no matter what, so Gladion is sure they will be fine next time. "We're gonna be a boring couple with boring activities. This week's been tough on us."

Much to his suspicion, Moon turns and shares a complicit look with Lillie and Hau, who smile devilishly at her right back. If he's meant to see this, he's not sure, but he guesses they will be merciful on him and his poor back. He might be 30, but his body is aging way too fast.

But then Moon looks at him, taking a step to his side to boop his nose with a batter-coated spoon. He flinches in surprise, causing her to bite her lip. "I promised I'd be all day by your side, didn't I? You're gonna get tired of me by the end of today."

Smirking, Gladion wraps his arms around her waist, rubbing their noses together. "You know that would never happen. Headaches are a thing, but me getting tired of you _isn't_."

"Oh? Are you telling me I give you headaches?"

His smirk widens. "You're a walking headache and I don't mind it as much as I should. You're bad for my health, Moon."

"Aw, you're such a romantic gentleman."

He snickers and she chuckles. At the table, Lillie takes a calm sip of her tea, giggling at their display. "You two should know there are times and places to be lovey-dovey."

Hau begins a fit of laughter, yet it's cut short when he lifts his nose, detecting a foul smell. "Wait, is something burning?"

Caught up in the moment, Moon had left the pancake on the fire, and when she breaks the little moment of peace between them, she shrieks and rushes back to the fire while Lillie and Hau laugh at her expense and Gladion looks at her with a mixture of adoration and amusement.

Then the pancake bubbles up and explodes in a sheen of batter all over her face and _that_ 's when he laughs.

* * *

Moon picks him up from his meeting at two o'clock sharp. She's waiting outside the meeting room, sitting on top of one of the statues in the hallway. Many of the visitors from the Kandrus Empire gape at her unkempt disposition, deeming her to be a criminal; but their surprise only grows when she greets Gladion with a wave and he catches her when she throws herself to the floor, gently guiding her into his arms, and then letting her go and parting to leave like nothing had happened.

Much to his surprise, she has a basket with her, a little too heavy to be normal. A bready, salty scent wafts around her, but he doesn't dare ask; knowing her, she will refuse to tell him where they are going even if the answer is already obvious.

When they are at the gates of Zeffarei, Moon stops walking and takes out a black blindfold from her basket, grinning. "We're going for a walk, sir."

He hands himself into her whims too quickly, curious and secretly excited, and she's _beaming_ as she takes his hand and guides him out of Zeffarei. For a short second, Gladion wonders if she will take him to a ravine, maybe to a cliff, or perhaps to a dungeon to hunt for his birthday gift – they did that once and the results were surprisingly delightful.

There are birds around them as they walk, as well as the touch of long grass blades under his fingertips. There is a wispy smell of cold temperatures and a familiar meadow, a place he knows to have dandelions and an infinity of flowers and silence. In the distance, crickets chirp to attention, and the sky is vastly beautiful, blue, and clear. Gladion has been here before, sometimes to read a book and far away from his duties. Sometimes, Moon would join him, head on his lap as she reads a book of hers or she polishes her knives. The noises of both her knives being polished and the turning of pages is a must in these escapades of his.

So when she lifts the blindfold and sits him down, he's not surprised to find that they are in the Lunaria Plains, in the middle of the field without any signs of humankind around them. Far is the civilization, and Zeffarei is even further. From here, he can only see the top of the roof of the palace and Wicke's inn.

They are surrounded by grass, the very few big trees dotted in the landscape, and a very mild temperature. Gladion looks under him. "A… picnic?"

Moon is fidgeting with the hem of her shirt, sitting down right in front of him. "I improvised this bit today. When you mentioned that you wanted to sleep in today, I sneaked out of the academy a bit earlier and made lunch."

Gladion takes the liberty of opening the basket. Inside, he finds a surprising assortment of foods: bread, cake, a small pot with what he assumes to be curry rice, and small buns of different colors with different seeds on top. The smell they steam is like a kick of nostalgia right up his nostrils and into his heart.

He smiles knowingly, crooked on one side. "All of these are pretty familiar, I would say."

"Mhm." Moon crawls over to him, curling her arms around his shoulders to speak from a little closer. "Lillie gave me the idea, and Hau helped a little bit– and, by the way, they're gonna come here later when they're done with work."

".. And that's goodbye to our quality time together."

Laughing, Moon pushes him backward until his back hits the blanket, but the soft grass cushions his fall. Moon towers over him, elbows on either side of his shoulders. One of her hands combs back his long fringe, smiling as she does so. "Don't worry, we still got lots of time to be alone. We can even take a nap if you want– you look like you're about to fall asleep."

Admittedly, he's _that_ tired. The moment she had pushed him, his muscles had molten to the blanket and he suddenly feels _very_ blissful; the sun isn't hitting him in the face, and the little breezes on his face are quite nice. "The meeting was more boring than I expected– I wouldn't mind having my wife join the nap either, just so you know."

Moon's body heaves on his, relaxing. She still crawls to where her nose is brushing his, cupping his cheek and coaxing his eyes to close. "We got time to take as many naps as you want. After Lillie and Hau come by, we're gonna grab a pair of rafts and take a ride down the river."

She says all of this with a wide grin, knowing it will be fun, and Gladion can't help but laugh. "Rafting? We haven't done that in a while."

"Right? I told Hau and Lillie the same." Moon hums, thoughtful, chasing her trail of speech as she looks away. "Those two are gonna take a very mild trail, but I got a much more exciting plan for the two of us." Her smile widens to a full grin that fills her cheeks with mirth. She's sunlight. "And our plans involve a very small waterfall."

Gladion's chest vibrates with a faint chuckle, one that she sighs at. "One of us has to get a thrill out of it, huh?"

His hand rises to caress the crown of her head, musing over the pleasant feel of her hair under his fingers. She snickers a laugh. "Don't even doubt it. It's gonna be like the Pokétta stone expedition again– but with _friends_!"

Their adventure looking for the Pokétta stone had entailed them taking a small boat down a river, which had been nearly _flooded_ in winter, as Moon had failed to realize. They had been washed into a small cave after a tough trip, and while looking for a way out through actual land, Moon had fallen into a ravine that, as he later discovered, wasn't an actual ravine, but a passage where Moon had been hysterically jumping through, evidently unharmed while he recovered from his heart attack.

And at the end of that passage there had been a faint, blue, and golden light, as well as creatures that seemingly floated out of the walls. They were made of black, linear bodies, twisted in places in a way that none of them was equal to another. Their big eyes pried into them like deities looming over a planet, no hands needed to point them towards a wall that split in two with a mere splash of magic.

And in front of them had been the Pokétta stone, covered in dust and glyphs that Moon nearly collapsed over. The creatures – which Gladion and Moon later discovered to be the Unown race – had made them swear secrecy over the stone's location, but gave Moon a piece of the stone to take with her in memoriam.

They weren't together yet at the time, and they had firmly established that they wouldn't kiss _or_ get too intimate lest their resolution to wait faltered. However, that day she had been too happy to control herself, and she had thrown her arms around him to kiss him senseless until he couldn't breathe.

She had pulled away first, suddenly remembering that they were supposed to act like friends, but Gladion had very quickly shut her up with a kiss of his own, and things went back to platonic right after that.

In the end, Moon arrived back at Zeffarei with a sizable piece of the stone, which is currently hidden away in her house; though that place classifies more as a museum than an actual residence.

Part of him is excited to relive that experience, though at least they won't be at risk of death because of turbulent waters, but because she will be throwing both of them down a waterfall. That sounds nice.

Gladion puffs an unsmiling chuckle. "That sounds dangerous and probably deathly."

"Just the kind of stuff we like," Moon murmurs, her grin watering down to a smile. Her forehead touches his, their lips brushing. "But maybe we should take a little nap first, then? We can eat to our heart's content later."

He nods, cupping her cheek as her hands caress his face longingly. "That sounds like a good plan." But before she can get away, his other arm curls around her waist, pushing her against him. "I could use a little good night kiss for that, though. A little birthday gift."

Moon laughs, ringing clear in his ears and making her all the more beautiful and happy in his arms. "You're such a little spoiled brat, Gladion."

"Says the one that sleeps with _my_ clothes on."

She closes the distance between them, giggling and softly kissing his lips with so much care and love he could grow a pair of wings and fly them both to the sun in his bliss. Her touch is gentle and kind, seeking him just as he seeks her, sliding his lips against hers delicately, passionately, conveying all the adoration he feels for her in a single breathtaking kiss.

For the first time in years, Gladion is blissfully happy and, finally, _at peace_.

* * *

~~_Dear_ ~~ _Hello, Faba,_

_You probably were never expecting me to write you a letter, let alone establish any sort of communication with you. Or, maybe you were, which makes you more delusional than I thought you were._

_Somebody close to me told me to write you letters, once upon a time, and it has taken me years of wondering if I should or if I should not, and in the end, here I am: writing in my office when I should be sleeping._

_So… how have you been? I don't expect a response from you, and if you ever answer this letter, I doubt I will ever get to read it._

_Today was my birthday, but by the time this letter gets to you, I suppose it will have been a week after that. I doubt you even remember it was my birthday today, and if you did, you were probably cursing my name for leaving, or maybe you weren't. I hope things have been peaceful around there, considering the Blackring has stopped pillaging villages for fun. Or at least I think they have._

_You might be wondering where I am, what happened to me, and why I never came back home after the three days you gave me as a deadline. I think my absence should have given you a clear reason as to why I wished to stay away from you, and as it turns out, I am in a completely different place now._

_You once told me I would never find my family, and that maybe they were dead, and you couldn't have been more wrong. I found my sister, my mother, and made a family of my own– though that's a story for another day, maybe for another letter that won't have a response. Turns out that my family has been living at the other side of the strait, in a palace, surrounded by wealth you will never see; not even in three lifetimes._

_My sister's name is Lillie, Lillie of Aedus, and my mother, Lusamine, is currently in a monastery, retired, and in peace. At the time I met her, you two would have gotten along very well; I couldn't stand either of you for the very same reasons, but I would rather keep this letter cordial._

_I have met friends and lived incredible adventures while I was gone. I met Moon and Hau, my best friends; Hau got married a few years ago to Lillie, and he's now leading the Royal Guard here in Zeffarei. They're very happy together, like that couple that leads the local flower shop in Ludwig Town. I hope they are still happy together. Lillie is a very powerful sorcerer, and she can brew the best of potions in no time at all; she's learning fast, she's the smartest of them all. I'm very proud of her._

_And as for me…_

_Moon, one of my best friends, is an extraordinary assassin, and has traveled all around the region for all her life since she was a kid; and we happened to meet right after I left Ludwig Town, and since then, my life has been the best it could have ever been, sans some tragedy and mild depression. Seeing where I am today, I wouldn't have had it any other way. She has never left my side, and I have never left hers._

_And now, she's my wife; and I am the Emperor of the Aedus. It took me years to get to where I am today, years of hard work, patience, and frustration; but Moon is mine now, and the throne is as well. Everyone in this Empire respects me as their leader, and things are busy here, but they never get boring._

_I have a family now, made of a stubborn and impossibly rowdy and talented assassin, a little sister with miraculous hands, and one of the most skilled sorcerers and swordsmen in this Realm. And I'm just the happiest I have ever been. I wake up every day to a woman that loves me, a future ahead of me, and friends that will be there to support me through it all._

_I think you wouldn't have liked them. Their hands are a little dirty, they have little to no manners, and they aren't as smart as you are– Lillie meets your standards, but the rest don't. And I can't care about that anymore, because the only standards that matter are mine now._

_I meet my standards, though. I'm happy. I have grown to be who I always wanted to be, and I'm cherishing every day that passes like it will be my last._

_Before I left Ludwig Town, I assumed I would live a life led by tedium and a boring job, much like everyone in that place does. I was there a few years ago, and I know that town will never change, neither for good nor for bad. I thought I had no future ahead of me, and that I would die without anybody to love me and cherish me for who I am, for who I wanted to be._

_But now here I am, surrounded by a family that has had my back through it all. We have fought pirates, been chased by bandits, we were kidnapped, and maybe we were nearly killed by monsters more than twice as high as the clocktower in Ludwig Town. We might have gotten in trouble each day of our lives, but it has been fun, and it will always be fun as long as they're by my side._

_You're probably wrinkling your nose and wanting to berate me for my lack of judgment, but considering it was my judgment which got me here – the judgment that made me follow these crazy people to the very end – I don't have any regrets._

_You don't have to worry about me, if you ever did._

_I'm safe now. I'm the safest and happiest I have ever been._

_I don't expect you to ever respond to this letter, but I hope that the little human part of your heart that isn't frozen will come to understand that being made of stone isn't the solution to everything and that if we ever meet again, it will be as equals. As grown men that respect each other._

_Hopefully, you will understand that my life is different to yours, and that it's great this way, and that it might be wrong for you, but the only person to ever dictate if it's wrong or right is me._

_As I said, I might be the Emperor now, but that doesn't mean you can come here as you wish to satiate your curiosity or your possible envy; Moon, my wife, has heard of all the things you told me in the past, and she doesn't take kindly to you, and neither do Hau or Lillie or pretty much anybody here, so I suggest you don't come close. As my beloved Empress has said a few times, 'even torturing rats like him (you) is illegal in Zeffarei'._

_And I don't think I can stop her from being who she is, so I simply wish you the best, and I hope that in time, you will wish the best for me, too._

_My most cordial farewell,_

_Gladion of Aedus._

— FIN

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm dead, deceased, done and like DEAD
> 
> and 400cq, is, ladies and gentlemen, DONE AND I GO AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
> 
> this chapter was actually meant to go at the ending of Arc 3. In the last ep of that arc, Moon and Gladion would kiss before she left. This was also during the time I thought they'd kiss during their talk at the Lunaria Plains back in arc 2 before Moon died lmao, and arc 3 was meant to have love drama, but I figured the pacing would be nicer if I stretched things and I knew that making them kiss in arc 2 was too drastic, and thus the rest came crumbling under its own weight LMAO
> 
> So in the end you get 20 more chapters + the actual epilogue of the story which is, unlike anyone including myself would have expected back in chapter 2: Moon and Gladion being happily married, being slightly horny for each other as per my nitpicks, and just very happy. I jyst can't believe Gladion went from fucking warrior peasant to warrior emperor. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS AAAAAAAAA
> 
> let's give this chapter a lil coverage and then we'll roll the credits LMAO
> 
> "Moon wakes up to arms wrapped around her, with soft kisses being pressed along the length of her neck, stirring her awake. She snuggles deeper into the pillows, groaning faintly. "Gladion…" / The low bass of a chuckle vibrates within his chest against her back, his hand caressing the bare skin of her hip."Good morning, Moon." - of course after arcs on arcs cuddling wwe end this WITH CUDDLES
> 
> "You weren't this considerate when we got married, Moon." / "And you weren't this touchy either," she breathes out, in pure bliss. "That's what years of marriage do to you. We've become boring." - casually peppering the fact that they're married. also if that's not the most 400cq!Moon thing ever idk what is
> 
> "Lillie puts a hand on top of her husband's. "You know she was joking, right?" - CASUALLY PEPPERS THE FACT THAT THEY'RE MARRIED TOO
> 
> "She had attended his coronation as well, arm wrapped around her daughter's, eyes teary with what seemed to be clarity and memory after a lifetime of despair. Then she had wrapped her arms around him, smiling truthfully. "You will be a great Emperor, Gladion." - I hate Lusamine but this I can get behind. it's a little bittersweet that I never properly wrote Lillie having an actual arc of resentment, but I purposefully didn't dwell too deeply into this part. It's been like years since the main plot and they're definitely not in loving terms, but they're civile and that's what matters.
> 
> I'm on the side of 'I don't want Lusamine to be redeemed' and it's why I didn't give her a proper redemption, though the circumstances of this arc are different than canon so that's all
> 
> "Many of the visitors from the Kandrus Empire gape at her unkempt disposition, deeming her to be a criminal [...]" Moon is literally the FUCKING EMPRESS and she's still a little shit I love her
> 
> "He smiles knowingly, crooked on one side. "All of these are pretty familiar, I would say." - those are all the dishes they baked during their grand 400 coin quest so yes
> 
> I'm not gonna say a WORD baout the letter because there's no better way this story could have ended than with that letter. it's like PERFECT circle. He's in such a state in his life he can write to his elder (advice that Moon gave to him years back when he last visited Ludwig Town btw, as per chapter 12?) and he's flexing how happy he is. I'm so proud
> 
> and THIS is how 400cq ends!!! The 400 Coin Quest that they never received a prize for, mind you LMAO but that's never been the point anyway :)) 
> 
> THANK YOU TO WHOEVER HAS READ THIS FAR!! If you made it this far, I hope you enjoyed this fic! It took me all summer to write and I had a blast writing it, it's probably my favorite thing ever! I'm aware that many people dropped it halfwya through or even earlier, so whoever made it here is a warrior ahaha. The story didn't get the reception I hoped and I'm not gonna lie, it brought me a bit of stress, but that stress has lead me to want to get better at this! I'm working on more projects as I write this, which I hope you will see soon! This fic means, meant and will forever mean a lot to me, and I can only hope it meant something to other people too <33
> 
> I also have a small surprise- I actually wrote smut for this um. I'm not sure why I did but I have written it, though I'm not sure if anyone would be interested so I welcome thoughts about that LMAO if anyone would be interested in smut, let me know- it's long and spicy hehehe
> 
> If you made it this far, thank you for reading! We will see each other in other fics, maybe in that smut piece, elsewhere somewhere! Have a good day, a good month, and a good life! See you around, and thank you for everything!! <3333
> 
> \- Mirai


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